Program Contacts

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Important Information

Institution-wide CBME Implementation within PGME at Queen’s University

Queen’s University received approval to adopt a Competency-based Medical Education model in all specialty programs, effective July 1, 2017. 

Residents attending Queen’s in July 2017 and beyond will use time as a framework rather than the basis for progression. It is not anticipated that the duration of training will change for the majority of trainees. Residency programs will be broken down into stages, and each stage will have a series of entrustable professional activities (EPAs) based on required competencies. These EPAs will create more targeted learning outcomes and involve more frequent, formative assessments within the clinical workplace to ensure residents are developing and receiving feedback on the skills they need.

The changes at Queen’s University are intended to align with the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons’ broader, national Competence by Design initiative to introduce CBME in all faculties and all disciplines.  This program at Queen’s University simply adopts CBME on an advanced timeline.  However, as each specialty and subspecialty adopts CBD nationally, Queen’s will make any necessary adjustments in order to fully align and comply with CBD. 

Further information on CBD can be found on the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada website at: CBD implementation 

Altus Suite - admissions assessments of non-cognitive skills

 

All applicants applying to the Orthopedic Surgery program, at Queen's University are required to complete the Casper Test (Altus Suite), to assist with our selection process for the 2021-2022 Application Cycle.

 

Altus Suite is a standardized, two -part online assessment of non-cognitive skills, interpersonal characteristics, and personal values and priorities that we believe are important for successful students and graduates of our program. Altus Suite will complement the other tools that we use for applicant review and evaluation. In implementing Altus Suite, we are trying to further enhance fairness and objectivity in our selection process.

 

Altus Suite consists of:

• Casper: a 60-90 minute online situational judgment test (SJT)

 

You will register for Altus Suite for Canadian Postgraduate Medical Education (CSP-20201 – Canadian Postgraduate Medical Education),

Access www.TakeAltus.com to create an account and for more information on important dates and requirements, and the Altus Suite assessments.

Electives

We recognize that the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted candidates’ opportunities to arrange and complete electives and would like to reassure you that a lack of elective activity this year will not negatively impact your application to our program.

COVID-19 vaccination requirements:

Please refer to the 'Restrictions' section of the Ontario eligibility criteria for messaging regarding COVID-19 vaccination requirements.

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General Instructions

Program application language: English

Program application language: English

• Queen's University Orthopaedic residency training program underwent a regular Royal College accreditation site survey in March 2018, and received full approval by the Accreditation Committee.

We currently offer community orthopedic rotations at Belleville General Hospital and Peterborough Regional Health Centre, with the hopes of collaborating with several other community hospitals in the near future. 

 

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Supporting Documentation

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Review Process

Applications submitted after file review has opened on January 31, 2022

Supporting documents (excluding letters of reference) that arrive after file review has opened  on  January 31, 2022

Letters of reference that arrive after the unmasking date on January 31, 2022

During our orthopaedic residency application review process here at Queen's University, we try to include as many members of the orthopaedic division as possible. We allow for members of the Resident Program Committee to review applications as well as to interview. Should any of these members not be available to participate, other members of the division are invited to participate. All the completed applications received by the deadline date will be broken up into groups of 8-10 based on alphabetical order. Each group of applications will then be evaluated by three separate reviewers; The Program Director, one faculty member and one resident. Each reviewer provides a numerical score based on the specific elements (Academics, Research, Reference Letters, and Interest in Queen's) for each application.  The data (application review score + CASPer score) is collected by the Program Coordinator and then reviewed by the Program Director. The top 20 (approximate) ranked applicants will be selected for an interview.  

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Interviews

Dates:

• March 8, 2022

Selection Criteria

An acceptable academic record which demonstrates special proficiency in those subjects related to orthopaedic surgery. At least one orthopaedic surgery rotation in clerkship. Some references should be obtained from academic or community specialists in orthopaedics. References should be able to attest to interest and proficiency in the specialty, cognitive and manual skills, ability for self-directed learning, time management and teamwork; as well as comment on interpersonal skills. Research productivity during medical school including research projects, presentations and publications will also be considered.

Program goals

The Orthopaedic Surgery training program at Queen's University provides a challenging and rewarding surgical education for all of our trainees. Our program is characterized by a small number of attending staff and residents which ensure that residents receive personalized attention and interactions from our attending surgeons. Our trainees receive excellent exposure to the broad field of orthopaedic surgery, with an emphasis on clinical decision making and technical skills.

The main goal of our training program is to have a well-organized and well-structured educational program, as well as provide trainees with an abundance of clinical and surgical experience in order to assist the residents in acquiring mastery in the knowledge, skills and professional behaviours required to be a competent and confident orthopaedic surgeon. 

Selection process goals

We receive approximately 55 applications, of which approximately 20 applicants will be offered an interview.

We are looking for residents who are bright harworking individuals that are dedicated team players with a passion for orthopaedics. Successful candidates will also have strong interpersonal and problem-solving skills, as well as high ethical and professional standards.

For those who are invited for an in-person interview, the file review score and interview score are produced independently of each other. Once interviews have been completed the interview committee will meet to discuss each applicant and begin assembling a final rank order. The final rank list is completed at the end of this meeting. Only information obtained through review of application files and the interview process will be used in decision-making.

File review process

Evaluation criteria :

Elective criteria

Interview process

Interview evaluation criteria :

Information gathered outside of CaRMS application

Specifically, we may consider:
Social interaction during program related events
Communication with program administration
Social media
Unsolicited reference letters
Unsolicited email references
Unsolicited verbal information on a candidate's prior performance
Unsolicited feedback from colleagues and co-workers

Ranking process

The behavior(s) exhibited below during the interview process may prevent an applicant from being ranked by our program :
Unprofessional or inappropriate behavior   
Did not attend interview   
Interview performance was not competitive   

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Program Highlights

• The 1:1 ratio of residents to faculty (15 residents to 15 faculty) with early clinical and surgical exposure as the primary learner.
• Fully integrated competency-based residency model, with a well-organized educational curriculum and directed clinical/surgical experiences to help learners achieve success as a future orthopaedic surgeon.
• 2 Elective rotations provided. Interprovincial and international electives can be taken. With no restrictions on elective locations, however please note that electives are not subsidized. 
• There is one community rotation. Queen's Orthopaedics has relationships with regional partners (Belleville, Peterborough, Brockville), but other locations can be acceptable. 
• A concurrent Masters or PhD is possible through the Queen's CIP program. 

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Program Curriculum

This residency program is for 5 years.

Program length of training does not exceed the Royal College or College of Family Physicians of Canada standard.

The Queen's University training program in Orthopaedic Surgery provides a rewarding surgical education for our residents.  The training program is characterized by a tight knit and comprehensive group of attending staff (fifteen) and a small group of residents, which ensures that residents have personalized attention and interactions with the attending surgeons. Residents gain excellent exposure to the broad field of orthopaedic surgery, with emphasis on clinical decision making and surgical skills development starting at an early stage of training.

Since 2017, we are a fully implemented competency-based residency training program. Our training program follows the educational principles of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons Competence by Design framework which was applied across all Canadian Orthopaedic programs starting in 2020.  Specifically, we aspire to have a well-organized and well-structured academic program and clinical/surgical experiences to assist residents in acquiring the clinical knowledge, technical skills and professional attitudes necessary for them to become successful orthopaedic surgeons.  Secondly, our program provides abundant resources to allow residents to develop the skills and knowledge required to be a competent and confident Orthopaedic Surgeon.  These resources include good clinic and surgical volumes, strong educational and research resources, and attending staff who are highly committed towards resident teaching.  We implement our educational program with clear goals and objectives for residents at the various levels of training. We have developed a comprehensive feedback mechanism through the competency-based framework to identify where residents are excelling, and when they need additional effort and practice in order to achieve the educational goals. 

The Queen’s Orthopaedic training program has a “resident centric” view. Our program has adapted a "night float" call system for the core orthopaedic residents. During the evening hours there are three residents (at various levels of training who are “on-call”). After 23:00 hours a single senior resident becomes responsible for covering all emergency calls from the ward, the Emergency Department and Operating Room. This initiative has resulted in improved resident satisfaction while allowing us to remain in compliance with the PARO contract. It continues to allow graduated responsibility and educational opportunities for residents at various levels of training.

A hallmark of the Queens Orthopaedic training program is the small ratio of residents to attending staff.  We have consciously decided to limit the number of fellowship training positions at our centre in order to ensure adequate clinical experiences for our residents. Queen's Orthopaedics applies the spiral learning approach by providing residents with a rotation on each subspecialty service every year in training. This allows for multiple exposures to each subspecialty and each attending staff over the five years of their training. This means that residents can build on previously developed knowledge and skills during subsequent rotations on a service. And each attending staff is committed to teaching and improving the skills and knowledge of residents as they progress through the program. Our expectation is that upon graduation from the Orthopedic Residency Program our graduates will have the knowledge, skills and attitudes to be able to commence a community practice without additional training. However, graduates are as well prepared for further sub-specialty orthopaedic training, for those desiring an academic career or a sub-specialty community practice. All residents undertake the same required rotations during their residency but 2 elective rotations can be taken during the Core of Discipline stage to allow for individualization of the program.

 

PGY-1 (Transition to Discipline and Foundations of Discipline) 

Orthopaedic Surgery - 5 blocks

Community Orthopedics - 1 block

Radiology and Physical Medicine & Rehab - 1 block

Internal Medicine - 1 block

Emergency Medicine - 1 block

Vascular Surgery - 1 block

Plastic Surgery - 1 block

Neurosurgery - 1 block

Intensive Care Unit (Kingston General Hospital) - 1 block

PGY-2 (Foundations of Discipline) 

The PGY2 year has one block of critical care rotation (ICU). This is followed by an Associated Specialties (Spinal cord rehab, Amputation, Pain, and Geriatrics) and Allied Health (Physio, OT, Prosthetics) clinic rotation designed to expose residents to other providers in the multidisciplinary MSK care system. 1 block off call is provided to allow residents to study for the Foundations of Surgery Exam. 

The remaining PGY2 year is composed of two block Junior Rotations on each of our clinical services with a focus on arthroplasty, arthroscopy, trauma, and pediatric orthopaedics. Residents now have the opportunity to complete their first night float rotation during their Foundations of Discipline training increasing their level of independence. 

PGY-3/4 (Core of Discipline)

The Core of Discipline stage allows for iterative 3 block rotations on each of the four orthopedic services each year.  This provides residents in each of the PGY 3 & 4 years with a continuous 3-block exposure to sports medicine/upper extremity (service A), arthroplasty/foot and ankle (service B), pediatrics/spine (service C), and trauma/night float (service D).  In addition, up to 2 blocks of electives may be taken during this time if the resident is progressing well with the mandatory rotations.  Orthopaedic oncology is addressed as a longitudinal exposure throughout all rotations.

PGY-5 (Core of Discipline and Transition to Practice)

The PGY5 year is a consolidation year with a three block rotation on Upper extremity & sports medicine, three blocks of Pediatric and spine, three blocks of Arthroplasty & lower extremity reconstruction, one block of trauma and one block of night float. PGY5 residents also receive one block of exam preparation where they are not on a scheduled service and do not take call. 

Research

Residents must complete two research projects during their residency and present these projects at the annual resident research day. We recommend that residents try to present a research project every year, since academic productivity during residency is very helpful for residents obtaining their choice of a high quality fellowship. 

Residents are encouraged to participate in research groups at the Human Mobility Research Centre. There are several research groups that contain members of the Division of Orthopaedic Surgery, the Departments of Mechanical and Materials Engineering and the School of Computing.  Research groups allow the orthopaedic residents to work with graduate students as part of a defined research team. There is protected time available (one research half day per week) to ensure that orthopaedic residents are able to effectively meet and collaborate on the research teams. Financial support is available for residents to attend national and international meetings in order for them to present their research.

Residents interested in pursuing a graduate degree (MSc or PhD) can apply for the Queen's CIP program. This allows residents to simultaneously engage in their orthopaedic training and graduate degree in a flexible way to maximize the efficiency for achieving both goals. 

Academic Curriculum

Surgical Foundations academic program provides an intensive "surgical bootcamp", with sixteen academic half days during the first eight weeks of residency to cover the basics of what residents need to know. These bootcamp sessions are followed up with an OSCE during the 9th week, in order to ensure the basic principles of surgery are being met for the Transition to Discipline level. The Surgical Foundations program has an academic half day seminar series which occurs biweekly from September to June. This seminar series covers the Principles of Surgery, medical ethics and clinical topics. Surgical Foundations residents are also encouraged to participate in the orthopaedic academic teaching when there is not a scheduled Surgical Foundations session. Additional academic sessions that occur during the academic year for the Foundations of Training residents are the QCARE conference (a two day conference focusing on CanMED roles and objectives) as well as the LMCC practice OSCE which occur prior to the LMCC part 2 exam. 

For PGY2 residents, a week long Orthopaedic Boot Camp has also been developed focusing on the basic skills of common orthopaedic procedures: surgical approaches, arthroplasty, arthroscopy, trauma, and pediatrics. Once the residents start their orthopaedic rotations they join the orthopaedic academic half days and full day sessions dedicated towards anatomy and surgical simulations.

In 2019, the academic curriculum and schedules have been modified in order to provide a more balanced academic schedule. The residents have designed and spearhead an Anatomy Bootcamp which takes place during the academic half day on Wednesday afternoons throughout the summer months. During their Anatomy Bootcamp, the residents focus on a specific surgical area each week through lectures, review of appropriate pro-sections and of surgical approaches in the Anatomy Lab. Throughout the remainder of the academic year, residents participate in Academic 1/2 day on Wednesday afternoons in which they follow an eight week block schedule. Six of the eight weeks will focus on one sub-specialty and will include three lectures on high yield RC objectives derived topics, as well as attending staff presented interesting pertinent cases. The other 2 weeks consist of a practice MCQ exam/oral exam and a subspecialty specific Academic Full Day simulation sessions. The Academic Full Days consist of lectures, anatomy sessions and surgical skills simulations, that are driven by RC procedural EPA's. Trauma rounds are also held for 1 hour each Monday morning utilizing a case based learning approach. Finally, senior orthopaedic residents are offered to participate in the U of T, Mt Sinai Oncology rounds during their rotation on the B-service (Arthroplasty/Oncology/Foot & Ankle).

 

Conferences: 

AO/OTA basic fracture course is funded and supported by the Department of Surgery for all PGY2 residents.

The Orthopaedic Basic Science Course is a fully funded mandatory course provided for in PGY3.

PGY 5s are provided funding in order to attend the final year review courses (CORR - Peds, Recon, Trauma + St. Justine Pediatric review + Canadian Orthopaedic Resident Forum (C.O.R.F.))

All residents receive funding for conferences during each year of their training. If a resident is presenting at a conference, they may apply for additional financial support from the Department of Surgery. 

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Training Sites

Resources

Kingston Health Sciences Centre (both in-patient and ambulatory care centre)

Intensive Care Unit (3 - Adult, Pediatric, Cardiac Sciences Unit)

Belleville General Hospital Community Orthopaedic Rotation

Peterborough General Hospital Community Orthopaedic Rotation

Human Mobility Research Center

Queen's Anatomy and Simulation Labs