Our Team

Dr. Joel B. Freeman, MD, MSC, FRCD, FACS

Joel B. Freeman was born and brought up in Moncton, New Brunswick, on the Canada’s East Coast. After High School, he went to Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia where he enrolled in the Commerce Faculty. Over the next four years, he acquired Pre-Med Credits and, in 1962 was accepted into McGill University Medical School. Four years later, he graduated second in the class of 100 with the first place Gold Medal in Surgery and another Medal for coming second in Psychiatry. He was accepted into the Rotating Intern Program at the Royal Victoria Hospital, McGill University and subsequently, into their Surgical Program. He trained in the Royal Victoria Hospital, McGill University, for five of the next six years including one year of Experimental Surgery during which time he acquired an M.Sc. He set up the first Canadian Parenteral Nutrition Service in Canada during his year of research in 1969, giving the first Canadian Paper on the subject in 1970. He did his second year of Residency in the Massachusetts General Hospital, at Harvard.

He completed his training in June of 1972 and took five months to prepare and take his Canadian and Quebec Fellowship Examinations. In November 1972, he moved to the University of Iowa in Iowa City, as an Associate in Surgery. His goals were to continue his studies in Surgical Nutrition and organize the surgical services at the Veteran’s Administration Hospital. Over the next five years, he continued to work and practice both in the Vet and University Hospital, setting up another Surgical Nutrition Service. He worked extensively in the University’s Clinical Research Unit. He established a liaison with the Endocrine Service and he set up a section of Surgical Endocrinology in which he was the principal surgeon. He worked closely with a Biochemical colleague and many different members of the Department of Medicine. In the Clinical Investigative Unity, he worked with various aspects of Surgical Nutrition and Morbid Obesity and was fortunate to be working on the surgical service of Dr. E. Masson. He was promoted to Assistant Professor.

In 1977, he was recruited to the University Of Ottawa, Ottawa General Hospital as an Associate Professor of Surgery and Chief of the Division of General Surgery. He did the first Gastric Bypass Procedures in Canada and once again, set up a comprehensive Surgical Metabolism and Nutrition Service. He set up the first Surgical Endoscopy Service in the city and trained many residences in this regard. He reorganized the Residency Program and was personally responsible for training the final year Fellowship Candidates – something which he did in “Sunday School” for over 20 years.

He became the youngest full Professor in the history of the department of Surgery, in 1981.

During 1986, he took several Sabbaticals including one for six months at the Toronto General Hospital, to study Colon and Rectal Surgery. He set up a Pouch Service and became essentially a “General – Colon and Rectal Surgeon”. He set up and ran the only Ano-Rectal Physiology Lab in Ottawa in 1987 whch he ran until 2004. Over the years beginning in 1990, he became increasingly focused in this area and particularly in complex diseases of the Anus. He worked extensively with Incontinence Problems, Procidentia, Pelvic Outlet Disorders, the medical treatment of Fissure, Complex Fistula Disease, etc. He continued to publish in each of the areas in which he worked.

He left the University at the age of 65 and set up a Surgical Endoscopic and Out-patient Surgical Clinic where he worked for three years until June of 2008. He continued to hone his surgical skills by doing SURGICAL LOCUMS in remote communities.

He has recently opened another clinic, The Ottawa Proctologic and Surgical Clinic.

He and his second wife, Nadia, have four Children (all from previous marriages) and Dr. Freeman has a Nephew and two Grandsons. His interests include Photography, Piano, Martial Arts, and Racquet Sports. He lives with his wife, two dogs and one cat in Ottawa.