"Hands On" in Inuvik

I could not have asked for a better rural medicine experience than that which was provided in Inuvik. Dr. de Klerk organized an outstanding experience for me. He ensured that I was exposed to a diverse range of environments, preceptors, disciplines, and patients and he remained open to both inquiries and feedback. My education in Inuvik, from assisting in the operating room to descending in the MedEvac plane into Sachs Harbour, was profoundly "hands on". In addition to working in a full-service family practice environment, you will also have opportunities to attend overnight clinics in the outlying communities, assist surgeons and anesthetists in the OR, work in the ER, assist with deliveries, and to join the MedEvac team (medical evacuations), both from outlying communities into Inuvik and from Inuvik to Yellowknife or Edmonton. If you are prepared to work hard, you will have a unforgettable time in Inuvik.

My time outside of the medical community was unforgettable as well. While I was in the North, I attended the Northern Arts Festival, cooked and ate cariboo, hiked, fished, mountain biked, and came face to face with a grizzly. Oh, and make sure you ask Dr. de Klerk about his Kayak.



Cailan MacPherson, UBC