| What
is a Pediatric Surgeon?
A
pediatric surgeon usually devotes of his or her practice to the
surgical care of children. He or she must have graduated from
medical school, and completed five years of postgraduate General
Surgery training in an accredited training program. Pediatric
surgeons must then complete an additional accredited two-year
fellowship program in Pediatric Surgery.
Pediatric surgeons concentrate
on the special surgical problems of children. We care for infants,
children, and adolescents, and also help to counsel parents expecting
a baby who may have been diagnosed before birth with a surgical
problem. Pediatric surgeons are experienced in caring for the
wide variety of problems children may have, ranging from hernias
or appendicitis to cancer or serious congenital anomalies.
What
sort of credentials should a pediatric surgeon have?
A pediatric surgeon
should be Board-Eligible or Board-Certified in General Surgery
(board certification is granted when a fully trained surgeon has
taken and passed first a written, then an oral examination). Once
the General Surgery Boards have been passed, a fellowship-trained
pediatric surgeon becomes eligible to take the Pediatric Surgery
examination (this also involves both written and oral examinations).
Other credentials which
a pediatric surgeon may have include fellowship in the American
College of Surgeons, in the American
Pediatric Surgical Association, or in the American
Academy of Pediatrics. Each of these organizations requires
that Fellows meet well-established standards of training, clinical
knowledge, and professional conduct.
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