Canadian Fellowship Programs

MIGS Fellowship Program of the Month - January 2019
 

University of Saskatchewan

Established 2006

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Faculty

John Thiel - Director

Huse Kamencic

Darrien Rattray

Martha Briggs

Laura Weins

Jennifer Duda

 

Current Fellow

Tina Ngan

 

Incoming Fellows

Justin Mui (University of British Columbia)

Deanna Buitenhuis (University of Ottawa)

 

Office Support Staff

Brenda Corey

Kelly Phillips

Tara Campbell

Mandy Ebel

Melissa Porter

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Seeing this list of outstanding young surgeons who have trained in our program in Regina never fails to bring a smile to my face. Our program is a one-year surgical mentorship, with the fellows usually spending three to four days a week in the operating room working with the teaching surgeons. Our surgical practice is made up primarily of cases related to endometriosis, fibroids and abnormal uterine bleeding. With the surgical volume available, our fellows enter their career as MIS surgeon with a polished skill set and the confidence that comes with being in the weeds over and over and over.

 

Our fellows also have the opportunity to work in the Women’s Health Clinic, an ambulatory gynecology clinic that allows them to acquire a wide range of ambulatory procedural skills. They also spend a minimum of one half day in the office seeing new referrals and ongoing reviews. Our program has expanded to Saskatoon as well, and the faculty there offer a similar but different approach to office management and surgical approaches. We feel that experiencing a variety of practice models and procedure environments is important in preparing our fellows to adapt to most situations when they leave our fellowship for their permanent position. There are opportunities for our fellows to take obstetrics and gynaecology calls, affording them occasional independent practice, which also helps provide some preparation for independent practice.

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As they approach the last months of the fellowship, each fellow starts to self identify their perceived areas for improvement, sometimes with the helpful suggestions of the faculty. We are then able to organize an appropriate case mix to provide the appropriate experience required. These months are often the time that the less common cases are booked, procedures such as niche repair, laparoscopic cerclage and tubal re-anastomosis are quickly acquired as the fellows apply their skill set to new techniques.

 

We are approaching the graduation of our 14th fellow this year, which is remarkable given how young all of the faculty members are. It is very rewarding to see our fellows becoming opinion leaders and educators in the development of MIS in Canada.  We are excited about our two new fellows and as always look forward to watching them struggle and emerge as confident consultants and teachers.

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Previous Fellows

Huse Kamencic - Regina

Ciaran Goojha - Vancouver

Karine Lortie - Ottawa

Berenice Goorah - Montreal

Martha Briggs - Regina

Fariba Mohtashami - Vancouver

Jackie Madar - Montreal

Anet Maksymowicz - Winnipeg

Darrien Rattray - Regina

Laura Weins - Saskatoon

Liz Randle - Halifax

Marielos Rivas Pineda - Milton

Cornel Smith - Vancouver