The Queen’s Surgical Interest Group had an interesting presentation on plastic surgery today.
I feel like plastics is a speciality that many people misinterpret; it consists of much more than elective cosmetic surgery. I learned from the guest plastic surgeon, that plastics could be described as surgical wound management. Plastic surgeons work with large, messy wounds that may have been caused by burns, or trauma. Other surgeons will also call on plastics for help in repairing wounds that they have created themselves after removal of a large tumour. The plastic surgeons then use their specialized skills to manage the wound, possibly using grafts or flaps. They aim to preserve both function and cosmetics.
Sounds cool, eh? Of course, there are only about 22 residency positions available in all of Canada, so it is a very competitive speciality to get into.
Random picture of facial skin grafting:
You’re right… plastics is misunderstood. As far as life changing specialties go, this is one of the most dramatic, I think!
Comment by Tyler — January 20, 2009 @ 12:26 pm