The Education of an Academic Surgeon

Abstract

Today, I want to talk about “The Education of an Academic Surgeon.” I am not a professional educator. I have not taken special courses in theory or in the practice of education. It was not until I became a director of student clerkships that I was even offered such organized instruction. But the desire to teach was, and remains, my fundamental motivation for choosing an academic career. I chose the field of surgery, in large part, because it was where I thought I would be the best teacher I could be. I do not want to be misunderstood. I love solving the problems we general surgeons are asked to confront at the bedside and in the operating room. I get much pleasure from my research and I am continually fascinated with the cellular processes of gastric acid secretion and the pathophysiology of gastric mucosal injury. But if it were not for the students, residents, and research fellows, the practice of surgery and the pursuit of research would be stimulating and rewarding— but not more so than other good jobs. For me, academic surgery is a joy. And my joy comes from sharing moments of learning with students, structuring the environment that leads to maturation of residents, and guiding the processes of discovery and innovation by research fellows. For me personally, it is teaching that makes academic surgery a calling. So much for my personal passion for teaching. Is it important? I take it, almost as an article of faith, that educating the next generation of young academic surgeons is the most important thing that we, as the community of academic surgeons, do. But this is a proposition, not an argument; it is not, by itself, a call for action or change. Today, I want to take a good look at the process by which we educate younger people to become academic