CaRMS - CMG Stream
Program Highlights
The University of Toronto has centralized much of its teaching and surgical training at the new Kensington Eye Institute (KEI). Residents have a new dedicated space at the KEI, which includes a surgical simulator, wet lab, library, computer workstations, and small group teaching seminar room. Grand rounds occur on Friday mornings in the Departmental conference room, and there is dedicated protected time for resident teaching on Friday mornings.
The residents also rotate through all the major Toronto hospitals, including Toronto Western, Mount Sinai, Sunnybrook, Hospital for Sick Children, St. Michael's and Princess Margaret. The Ophthalmology Department has a very large faculty that includes comprehensive ophthalmologists and all sub-specialities. The University of Toronto also has a large and extremely active basic science research department.
Supporting Documentation
Reference documents
Required
Letter of reference - Number requested: 3
Required
Canadian Citizenship [Document must be notarized/certified]
Submit one of the following documents to verify your citizenship.
• Canadian Birth Certificate or Act of Birth
• Certificate of Canadian Citizenship
• Confirmation of Permanent Residence in Canada
• Passport page showing Canadian Citizenship
• Canadian Permanent Resident Card (both sides of card)
• Record of Landing, clearly showing the date of landing in Canada
Canadian Citizenship:
Proof of current citizenship or permanent resident status must be provided by submitting one of the following verifications to CaRMS by the Rank Order List deadline. (Photocopies acceptable). No other forms of verification are acceptable:
Notarized photocopy of Birth Certificate issued by an authority in Canada with any photo ID, or
Notarized photocopy of Canadian Passport, or
Notarized photocopy of Canadian citizenship certificate, Record of Landing; or
Notarized photocopy of Permanent Resident Card/Canadian Citizen Card – copies of both sides of card must be provided and legible.
Photo [Note: Photograph is used as memory aid only]
Medical School Transcript
Medical Student Performance Record
Custom Résumé / CV
Personal Letter
Undergraduate Transcript (Bachelor's Degree)
Ophthalmological Report
The ophthalmological report should include visual acuity (corrected and uncorrected), refractive error, stereo vision, colour vision, ocular muscle balance/motility, and health status of the eyes.
Optional
Graduate Transcript (Master/PhD Degree)
Review Process
Applications submitted after file review has opened on February 8, 2021
Will be considered until
Will NOT be considered
Supporting documents (excluding letters of reference) that arrive after file review has opened on February 8, 2021
Will be considered until
Will NOT be considered
Letters of reference that arrive after the unmasking date on February 8, 2021
Will be considered until
Will NOT be considered
Interviews
Details regarding interview dates
Interviews will be held Wednesday March 24, 2021
Notification/Invitation:Program will only notify applicants who are selected for an interview
Details regarding the interview process:The Resident Selection Committee reviews all applications based on the above selection criteria. Approximately 15 candidates are invited to the University of Toronto for a personal interview. For those invited, a full day of interviews will be conducted. Interviewees only notified via email.
Each applicant is reviewed by three interview teams comprised of four individuals per team. Each interview is 20 minutes duration. Each interview team has one resident member.
Selection Criteria
-A strong academic record
-Excellent communication and interpersonal skills
-Candidates should have a proven interest in ophthalmology as demonstrated by having undertaken electives in ophthalmology or related fields.
-It is recommended that references be obtained from academic specialists who have first hand knowledge of the applicant's performance during their elective.
-Candidates with an interest and /or experience in basic science or clinical research, are encouraged to apply.
Elective Requirements:We are looking for and rewarding applicants who have completed a broad range of electives including our specialty.
On Site Elective:We do not require applicants to have done onsite electives.
Program Curriculum
This residency program is for 5 year(s)
Program length of training does not exceed the Royal College or College of Family Physicians of Canada standard.
PGY-1
The PGY-1 year is designed to meet the requirements of the Royal College of Physicians & Surgeons and to prepare the applicant for the Medical Council of Canada Qualifying Examinations Part II. Upon acceptance into the Ophthalmology Residency Program, the PGY-1 resident is seconded to the department of medicine for training. During this time, PGY-1's attend our Friday morning grand rounds and resident teaching rounds. They have training opportunities in plastic surgery, ENT, and neurosurgery. They also do a mandatory rotation in pediatrics on the CTU. Prior to the conclusion of the PGY-1 year, residents start a 6 week basic science program in ophthalmology called the Toronto Ophthalmology Residency Introductory Course (TORIC). The program involves didactic lectures with slide presentations, wet labs and dissection sessions. This course is attended by ophthalmology residents from all across Canada as well as some international programs.
PGY-2 & 3 (Junior Residency)
During the junior residency, residents rotate through each of the 5 teaching hospitals in order to acquire a solid foundation in the basic science and clinical aspects of medical and surgical ophthalmology. PGY-2 residents complete 4 month rotations in general eye clinics which involve exposure to all areas of ophthalmology and allow development of core ophthalmic knowledge and skills. Residents in PGY-3 complete 2 month blocks of "vertical" medical ophthalmology rotations, including exposure to each of the subspecialty disciplines including: cornea/external ocular diseases, retina/vitreous, glaucoma, neuro ophthalmology & oculoplastics. They also complete a 4 month rotation in pediatric ophthalmology at the Hospital for Sick Children.
PGY-4 & 5 (Senior Residency)
Senior residents rotate through each of the 5 teaching hospitals. The emphasis here is on perfecting clinical skills in the general and subspecialty areas of ophthalmology and to provide a solid foundation in all aspects of surgical ophthalmology during this period of training. Residents in PGY-4 and 5 are primarily involved in surgical rotations.
We have created a "longitudinal" eight month rotation in cataract surgery at the Kensington Eye Institute (KEI). This rotation is "paired" with 8 months of placements at the four adult "base" hospitals (2 months each at Sunnybrook HSC, Toronto Western Hospital, Mt. Sinai Hospital & St. Michael's Hospital). Residents spend 1/2 of their time at KEI and the other 1/2 at the adult base hospitals. The remaining 4 months of the year occur at the Hospital for Sick Children focusing on pediatric eye surgery. Resident will still spend some surgical time at KEI while at HSC.
PGY-5 residents have a flexible year which is designed to begin emulating the transition to practice year which will be part of the new Royal College Competence by Design framework. Highlights of this year include involvement in a resident run "cataract clinic" providing all aspects of care to cataract surgery patients including pre and post operative management, and transition to a "senior back-up" on-call schedule. This year includes a longitudinal experience in glaucoma surgery at Mt. Sinai/KEI as well as considerable elective and Royal College study time.
Research
Resident research is actively promoted. By the PGY-3 level, a major prospective research project should be chosen and started. This project must be completed by the end of training and presented at the departmental annual "Resident Research Day" in June. They are also expected to complete one Quality Assurance (QA) project during the PGY4 year. Residents attend weekly research rounds, presented by local, national and international research scientists and receive lectures in critical appraisal of the research literature and clinical epidemiology. Residents are supported by the department to present their research at national and international meetings. Residents have protected time for their research endeavours.
Seminars
A dedicated academic half-day is committed on Friday morning for core resident lectures (8:45 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.) given by local faculty and visiting professors.
City-wide visiting professors rounds are held on Friday morning (7:30 a.m. to 8:30 a.m.) attracting world class lecturers to the University of Toronto.
In addition, there are journal clubs, oculoplastics rounds, small group teaching sessions, and a resident surgical teaching course using state-of-the-art equipment (including several Ziess microscopes, a Phacoemulsification and Vitrectomy unit).
Training Sites
The Department of Ophthalmology and Vision Sciences at the University of Toronto provides a fully integrated, comprehensive postgraduate training program. Residents rotate through 5 fully affiliated teaching hospitals:
-The Toronto Western Hospital, University Health Network
-Mount Sinai Hospital
-St. Michael's Hospital
-Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre
-The Toronto Hospital for Sick Children
Much of the surgical teaching now occurs at the Kensington Eye Institute (KEI), which is also the location of the Friday morning grand rounds and academic 1/2 day. The Kensington Vision and Research Centre (KVRC) has recently opened to provide clinical care and research opportunities. PGY-5 residents run a cataract surgery clinic at the KVRC.
In addition, residents rotate through Princess Margaret Hospital, where they gain experience in the diagnosis and management of ocular oncology.
There are no mandatory rural rotations, but residents have considerable elective and selective time during their senior years and are encouraged to pursue community rotations and international electives.
Additional Information
The ratio of residents to faculty is 24 to 120.
The average patient load is 20.
The library for the Department of Ophthalmology and Vision Sciences at the University of Toronto has computer facilities with access to email and electronic journals.
The Department of Ophthalmology and Vision Sciences at the University of Toronto is the oldest and one of the largest ophthalmology training programs in Canada. Our commitment is towards excellence in patient care, resident education and world class basic science and clinical research.
On occasion, applicants to our program are asked to fill out surveys relating to ophthalmology and our admissions process. These surveys are voluntary, and confidential. The admissions director uses the email addresses supplied by the applicants. If the applicant does not wish to participate please indicate that you do not wish to participate in these surveys