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Professor Rowan Parks

Clinical aspects of hepatobiliary and pancreatic surgery.

Professor Rowan Parks

Professor of Surgical Sciences / Honorary Consultant Surgeon 

Contact details

Group Members

  • Professor S Wigmore
  • Professor D Mole
  • Professor E Harrison
  • Ms Rachel Guest
  • Mr Ravi Ravindran
  • Ms Anya Adair
  • Mr Andrew Healey
  • Ms Sarah Thomasset
  • Mr Mike Hughes

Background

Professor Parks’ clinical and research interests are in HPB Surgery and surgical education and training. He is currently Professor of Surgical Sciences at the University of Edinburgh and Honorary Consultant Surgeon at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh.

Research Overview

Professor Parks has published more than 180 papers, written 48 book chapters, and has authored / edited 11 surgical textbooks, including Principles & Practice of Surgery and Hepatobiliary & Pancreatic Surgery. He has delivered more than 330 eponymous and invited lectures and has been awarded several prestigious prizes and travelling fellowships.

Biographical Profile

Professor Rowan Parks qualified from Queens University Belfast in 1989. He pursued his surgical training in Northern Ireland and then undertook a clinical fellowship in HPB surgery at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh. He was appointed a Senior Lecturer in Surgery and Honorary Consultant Surgeon in the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh in 1999, was subsequently promoted to Reader in Surgery in 2006 and was awarded a personal chair as Professor of Surgical Sciences in 2010.

Professor Parks is currently President of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh (RCSEd) and General Secretary of the International Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary Association (IHPBA). He is also an Honorary Patron of the Scottish Cancer Foundation. He is Past-President of the Association of Surgeons of Great Britain and Ireland (ASGBI), Past-President of the Great Britain & Ireland Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary Association (GBIHPBA), Past-Director of the James IV Association and Past-Treasurer of the European-African Hepato-Pancreatico-Biliary Association (E-AHPBA).

Professor Parks has a significant interest in Medical Education and Training. He has held numerous roles in the University of Edinburgh Medical School and is currently chair of the Fitness to Practice Committee. Within NHS Education for Scotland (NES), he has been Chair of the General Surgical Specialty Training Committee, Associate Postgraduate Dean, Chair of the Scottish Specialty Training Board for Surgical Specialties and from 2012-2022 was Deputy Medical Director.

Professor Parks’ clinical and research interests are in HPB Surgery. He has published more than 180 papers, written 45 book chapters, and has authored / edited 10 surgical textbooks. He has delivered more than 330 eponymous and invited lectures and has been awarded several prestigious prizes and travelling fellowships. Professor Parks has been conferred with Honorary Fellowships from the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow, the College of Surgeons of Sri Lanka, the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Pakistan and the Association of Surgeons in India. 

Honours and Awards

  • Georgina Hadden Research Fellowship, Royal Victoria Hospital, 1994
  • Fannin Prize, Intensive Care Society of Ireland, 1995
  • Insole Award, British Medical Association, 1995
  • Friar Travelling Scholarship, Queen’s University of Belfast, 1995
  • Moynihan Medal, Association of Surgeons of Great Britain & Ireland, 1996
  • Purce Lectureship & Medal, Royal Victoria Hospital, 1997
  • Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland Travelling Fellowship, 1998
  • Ethicon / Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland Travelling Fellowship, 2000
  • Millin Lecture & Medal, Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, 2000
  • Moynihan Travelling Fellowship, Association of Surgeons of GB & Ire, 2001
  • James IV Travelling Fellowship, 2004
  • Honyman Gillespie Lecture, University of Edinburgh, 2004
  • Visiting Professor to HPBASA, South Africa, 2008
  • RCSEd Professor Sir Robert Shields Lecture and Medal, ASGBI, 2010
  • Visiting Professor to University of Auckland, 2011
  • Visiting Professor to University of Cape Town, South Africa, 2012
  • Frank Penman Visiting Professor, University of Cape Town, South Africa, 2015
  • Royal Australasian College of Surgeons President’s Lecture and Medal, 2015
  • Honorary Fellowship, College of Surgeons of Sri Lanka, 2022
  • Honorary Fellowship, Association of Surgeons of India, 2022
  • Honorary Fellowship, Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow, 2023
  • Tehemton Udwadia Oration, Indian Association of Gastrointestinal Endosurgeons (IAGES), India, 2023

Other Responsibilities

  • Honorary Consultant Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgeon
  • President, Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh
Further information can be found on surgical website
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