Skin Cancer Institute
Surgical fellowship at the Skin Cancer Institute
Tauranga, New Zealand
Introduction
Director
Dr PJM Salmon, Fellow of the American College of Micrographic Surgery and Cutaneous Oncology, runs a Fellowship training programme based at the campus at 171 Cameron Road, Tauranga.
Dr Salmon is a vocationally registered dermatologist with private and public hospital practice. He is a visiting consultant at Tauranga Public Hospital and Honorary Consultant at Waikato Public Hospital. He is in charge of surgical training for dermatology residents at Waikato Hospital. He has admitting and operating rights at Tauranga Public Hospital and Norfolk/Southern Cross Private Hospitals in Tauranga. He is Chair of the Specialist Advisory Committee for Dermatology Training.
Registration
Foreign Fellows wishing to undergo the Fellowship at the Skin Centre should be Board Certified in Dermatology and Internal Medicine, be eligible to sit, or have passed, the Fellowship Examination of the Australian College of Dermatologists or hold CCST in Dermatology from the United Kingdom will need to obtain temporary registration as a Dermatologist in New Zealand. The Skin Cancer Institute will assist you in this process.
The Fellowship and Expectations of Competency
The Fellowship is a one year Fellowship. There are approximately 500 Mohs cases a year. Mohs surgery takes place Monday – Friday within our Institute, you would be scheduled to assist with Mohs surgery on Thursday and Friday. Fellows are also encouraged to attend cosmetic procedures taking place on Monday and Wednesday. The Fellowship week is Monday to Friday inclusive with days off being Saturday and Sunday. Most of Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday will be spent seeing your own consultations and operating on your own patients, or at Tauranga Public Hospital doing a Fellow’s Clinic (one per week). The vast majority of your work as a Fellow having your own clinic, will involve skin cancer and to some extent cosmetic dermatology. Nevertheless you are expected to have a high level of competence in general dermatology and dermatoscopy.
Dermatology in New Zealand is generally a secondary or tertiary referral service and expectations of standards are more in keeping with those in a large academic institution in the United States or a teaching hospital in the United Kingdom rather than a private practice
A reasonable standard of basic dermatologic surgery procedural work will be expected from Day 1.
Fellows are expected to be competent in simple complex layered closures, utilisation of M-Plasty or T-Plasty and a preliminary understanding and some experience with basic flaps and grafts. They should be familiar with a variety of suture techniques and the treatment of surgical complications such as infection and haematoma.
Fellows will be expected to be on call 24/7 throughout the Fellowship, (apart from leave days) for both their patients and Dr Salmon’s patients. The Skin Cancer Institute will cover their cell phone rental over this period, but not calls (there is no payment to receive calls in New Zealand).
The Fellow will be expected to work a total of 226 days per year. They will be awarded 20 days annual leave and 5 days conference leave.
Remuneration is an annual salary of NZ $100,000-120,000, and covers all work including being on call. This is paid monthly in arrears.
The Skin Cancer Institute is an equal opportunity provider.
Cosmetic Procedures
During the course of the Fellowship the Trainee will gain experience and training in techniques of tumescent liposuction, breast reduction, face lifts, fat transfer, contour threads, upper and lower blepharoplasty, TCA peels, laser resurfacing, cosmetic mole removal, sclerotherapy, treatment of leg veins with long pulsed Yag laser, hair removal laser, treatment of superficial veins of the face with the Dio-Lite laser, chemical peeling, dermabrasion, Botulinum toxin treatment, Collagen and Restylane fillers, fat transfer and occasionally hair transplantation. Close interaction with Oculoplastics is available through the contracted provision of Mohs service to the Oculoplastic Department of Waikato Hospital.
Didactic Teaching
The academic syllabus will be addressed through morning tutorials, once a week, prepared by the Fellows, encompassing all areas of cutaneous oncology and some areas of cosmetic dermatology surgery (please see schedule). This currently occurs as a breakfast meeting at 8:00am on Friday.
Facility
The Skin Centre at 171 Cameron Road, Tauranga, is a purpose built dermatology facility (2002) and incorporates 18 consultation rooms, four day stay theatre suites as well as ultraviolet treatment. In addition the Skin Centre has a dedicated Mohs unit comprising four purpose built theatres, and MOHs Laboratory
We currently have one Mohs fellow within the institute and with four resident Dermatologists, two of whom are Mohs surgeons. We have more than enough resource to accommodate your training requirements. Your schedule will involve 5/10ths training and education and 5/10ths of your own clinic. The schedule I have proposed mirrors that of our other fellow. Your will virtually never see the other fellow except at the Friday academic meetings. The Fellowship starts with a two week orientation period.