David J Phillips
M.B., B.S., F.R.C.S. (Ed) F.R.A.C.S.
SURGEON

What is a General Surgeon

History of General Surgery.
In the earlier part of last century, there were only two types of specialist doctors. Physicians treated medical conditions through the use of medication and Surgeons operated on the body part to repair or remove it.

As medical knowledge increased some surgeons became more specialised in specific areas of the body. Thus cardiologists operated on the heart, urologists operated on the urinary tract and kidneys, gynaecologists operated on the female reproductive organs, thoracic surgeons operated on the lungs and other organs in the thorax, neurosurgeons operated on the brain and spinal cord and vascular surgeons operated on the main arteries and veins.

The modern General Surgeon.
The general surgeon operates on a wide variety of conditions, including some of the above. During their surgical training all General Surgeons are trained by the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons to operate on most parts of the body. This training takes a minimum of seven years after graduation from medical school and then followed by several years working full time in a public hospital before entering private practice. All General Surgeons are trained in such things as:

• Removal of diseased body parts such as the gall bladder (cholecystectomy) and appendix (appendicectomy).
• Removal of tumours (either malignant or benign) found in various body parts. e.g thyroid gland, breast, stomach, abdomen, bowel or rectum.
• Repair of hernias.
• Excision of skin cancers including Melanoma, BCC and SCC.
• Repair of carpal tunnel (wrist) and other entrapped nerves (such as the abdominal wall).
• Treatment of haemorrhoids (haemorrhoidectomy) and other conditions of the anus such as Fissures and Fistulas.
• Excision of varicose veins.
• Amputation of diseased extremities such as fingers, toes, etc.
• Male sterilisation (vasectomy).
• A limited number of surgeons (usually those with additional training in the UK) are trained to perform diagnostic procedures such as Gastroscopy and Colonoscopy.

The trend to sub-specialisation.
Over the last ten to twenty years, the trend has been for General Surgeons to have a preferred area of interest. Some General Surgeons now operate exclusively in one area only. e.g Breast Surgeons operate on breasts only, Colo-rectal surgeons operate on the colon and rectum only, although they are trained to perform all of the above procedures.

Dr Phillips’s preferred areas of specialisation.
Dr Phillips continues to operate as a General Surgeon in many the areas for which he was trained. However his major areas of interest are:

• Hernia Surgery: Open and Laparoscopic
• Laparoscopic Surgery: Hernia, Gall Bladder (cholecystectomy) and Appendix (Laparoscopic appendicectomy)
• Diseases of the skin: Melanoma, BCC and SCC.
• Gastroscopy (sometimes called Upper Endoscopy)
• Colonoscopy

Home