The importance of non-operative surgical interests for surgeons

Professor John P Collins, FRACS Ex-Foundation Dean of Education, RACS

Surgeons usually have varied interests and hobbies outside their surgical practice. These activities often form the basis of an active retirement. However, life can spring unexpected surprises and hasten the significance of such pursuits. My career as an operating surgeon ended prematurely in 2003 when I injured my hand. I was fortunate to fall back on my other interests, particularly in medical education. This provided me with new opportunities and a new career. In 2004, I moved to Melbourne to take up my appointments as Foundation Dean of Education at RACS, and Associate Professor of Surgery and Surgical Education at the University of Melbourne. I joined the College at a time of unprecedented criticism of its educational practices and processes, including accusations that certain specialties were limiting opportunities for surgeons to train. Reviews of all aspects of the College’s activities were undertaken by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission and later by the Australian Medical Council (AMC). I became intimately involved in these reviews. Although no evidence was found to substantiate the original major criticisms, both the reviewers and the College identified opportunities for improvements. This stimulated the development of more transparent processes and evidence-based educational principles for the selection, education, training, and assessment of Trainees, including more uniform criteria and standards for the accreditation of hospitals and posts for training. In addition, an Academy of Surgical Educators was established with a focus on equipping and supporting surgical trainers, without whom no education and training can occur! This experience enabled me to assist in the AMC reviews of other medical colleges and of Postgraduate Medical Councils and to chair its Joint Standing Committee for Overseas Trained Specialists. My appointment at the University of Melbourne involved teaching medical students and surgical Trainees, and research in medical education. Students greatly appreciate those who are supportive and committed to their learning. The highlight of my time in this beautiful city was being awarded Teacher of the Year by the final year medical students in 2007. After being awarded honorary appointments at the University of Oxford as Visiting Professor of Surgery, and as Visiting Fellow at Green Templeton College, we moved to the UK in 2009. I was once again able to participate in teaching medical students and surgical Trainees and had unlimited access to Oxford’s famous libraries and colleges. Living in Oxford provided my wife and myself with many social, cultural, and other memorable experiences. Based on my previous experiences, Medical Education England invited me to chair an Expert Advisory Panel formed to evaluate the UK Foundation Programme. This program was established five years earlier for the education of UK doctors in Years 1 and 2 after their graduation. This culminated in a formal report—The Collins Report. All but one of the key recommendations were implemented. These varied experiences and findings from my research provided the basis for a Hunterian Lecture, which I delivered on surgical education at the Royal College of Surgeons of England in 2010. My longstanding interest in medical history stimulated my participation in the annual course organised by the Worshipful Society of Apothecaries in London. This rewarding course encouraged me to later enrol for a PhD in history at the University of Auckland. My thesis explored how surgery was transformed from a manual trade into a profession. I was awarded my Doctorate in 2021. I hope this brief account of my enforced career change following an injury, will encourage other colleagues to develop complementary interests outside operative surgery. The potential for a successful and fulfilling career change should not be underestimated.