What standard of care must a surgeon meet in treating a patient?

Wahba is a general surgeon. The standard of care which he must meet is that of a reasonably competent general surgeon of average skill and experience. The standard of care which a physician must render his patients has been restated on many occasions in reported decisions where negligent medical treatment was alleged. In McCormick v. Marcotte, 1971 CanLII 52 (SCC), [1972] S.C.R. 18, Abbott, J., at p. 21 outlined the standard as follows: "The test of reasonable care applies in medical malpractice cases as in other cases where fault is alleged. The medical man must possess and use, that reasonable degree of learning and skill ordinarily possessed by practitioners in similar communities in similar cases. Whether or not such test has been met depends, of course, upon the particular circumstances of each case."