Vascular Surgery

Year 1 Clinical Skills

Medical students will get the opportunity to learn about the basics of vascular surgery as well as have hands-on experience in performing focused examination on vascular patients including acquiring the ankle-brachial-index. The vascular clinical skills seminar occurs in the Spring.

Year 2 Vascular Surgery Workshop

In partnership with the Undergraduate Surgery Club, our division hosts an annual vascular surgery workshop where second year medical students can gain hands-on experience in endovascular surgery, CT scan interpretation, ultrasound-guided line insertion, as well as suturing and knot-tying. This workshop usually takes place in the Fall.

Year 3 & 4 Clerkship Rotations 

UBC medical students have the option to rotation through vascular surgery as part of their core clerkship during the surgical block. These can take place at either VGH, SPH, KGH (Kelowna) or RJH (Victoria). Students typically spend two weeks on service learning the various vascular pathologies and their respective medical and surgical managements.

​Elective students can arrange for two or four weeks elective at VGH, SPH or KGH to further strengthen their knowledge of the field as well as learn about our residency program. Interested students can apply through the Association of Faculties of Medicine of Canada (AFMC) website.

As a Royal College five year accredited residency program, we offer the complete spectrum of vascular care. ​Vascular Surgery and Endovascular rotations are based at Vancouver General Hospital, St. Paul’s Hospital, Kelowna General Hospital and Royal Jubilee Hospital. ​Elective opportunities at other academic sites in British Columbia can be arranged. The surgeons have an excellent, award-winning record for delivering enthusiastic, quality education. In addition, given the size of the Division, all areas of vascular surgery are well represented in the training program. This includes open and endovascular treatment of peripheral arterial, aneurysmal and venous disease. Surgeons perform both endovascular and open procedures. Excellent relationships exist with interventional radiology, cardiology, neurology, nephrology and anaesthesiology.

Learn more about the residency program here.

Info coming soon.

The UBC Division of Vascular Surgery has 4 core teaching sites:

1. Vancouver General Hospital
2. St. Paul’s Hospital
3. Kelowna General Hospital
4. Royal Jubilee Hospital

Learn more about these sites here.

The field of vascular surgery has been revolutionized with the advances in endovascular techniques. Novel therapies that promote improved patient outcome are being introduced on a regular basis making vascular surgery one of the fastest evolving medical fields. With the aging population and longer life expectancies, the at-risk group for vascular pathologies are ever-growing. Combined this makes it an exceptionally exciting time to be involved in vascular surgery related research.

​Research opportunities are available for residents and medical students interested in vascular surgery. Specific topic of interest include:

• Thoracic aortic repair
• Dialysis access
• Superficial and deep venous therapies
• Management of critical limb ischemia
• Endovascular device engineering
• Medical economic analyses
• Perioperative cardiac events

Learn more about the research in the division here.

In addition to the Department of Surgery monthly grand rounds, the Division of Vascular Surgery holds monthly journal clubs, city-wide rounds and site specific hospital rounds. More details can be found here.

Division Head: Dr. Kirk Lawlor

Director of Postgraduate Education: Dr. Jonathan Misskey

Director of Undergraduate Education: Dr. Jonathan Misskey

Senior Administrative Assistant – Academic: Jenny Salvatierra