Fully qualified orthopaedic surgeons attend medical school prior their surgical training. This entails four years of undergraduate education followed by a further four years of study at a medical school. Orthopaedic surgeons are also required to complete residency and registrar training in orthopaedic surgery. This four year residency or registrar training is usually preceded by one or two years of more general surgical rotations. This is followed by four years of advanced training in the field of orthopaedic surgery.

Orthopaedic surgery is very competitive, with only the best candidates selected to complete their orthopaedic residency and registrar training to become practising orthopaedic surgeons. It’s not uncommon for qualified orthopaedic surgeons to have completed medical school training at the top of their class.

Orthopaedic surgeons will often choose to do further study to become a specialist in a certain type of orthopaedic surgery. These types are known in the orthopaedic industry as ‘fellowships’. At the completion of their residency or registrar training, orthopaedic surgeons will go on to undergo a further year of fellowship training, which may extend to two years, depending on the fellowship. This training usually involves a heavy research component. Some of the most common fellowships include spine surgery, hand surgery, foot/ankle surgery, shoulder/elbow surgery, pediatric orthopaedics, total joint reconstruction, musculoskeletal oncology, orthopaedic trauma and surgical sports medicine. While these are common fellowships picked by orthopaedic surgeons, they are not exclusive to just those who practice orthopaedic surgery. An example of this can be seen in a neurosurgeon deciding to specialise in spine surgery.

Orthopaedic surgeons are considered to be fully qualified once they have completed their specialty fellowship training.

You can find more information on the same subject by visiting http://www.orthosports.com.au/

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