Dr. Meterissian studied medicine at the MUHC, from which he graduated in 1985. By 1990, he had completed his residency in general surgery in the University’s teaching hospitals and completed a two-year research fellowship in surgical oncology at New England Deaconess Hospital in Boston. He went on to complete a second two-year fellowship in clinical surgical oncology at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas, under the supervision of Dr. Charles Balch. Along the way he obtained a Masters in Experimental Surgery.
In 1994, Dr. Meterissian returned to McGill University as Assistant Professor of Surgery and Oncology. From 1997 to 2001, he served as General Program Director in surgical oncology. In 2001, he was promoted to Associate Professor with tenure in addition to becoming Program Director of General Surgery, a position he held until 2007, when he took his current position as Associate Dean of Postgraduate Medical Education. In 2010, he was promoted to Full Professor.
He has been a member of the Centre for Medical Education since 2001 and was President of the Canadian Society of Surgical Oncology from 2007 to 2009. He was the Chair of the AFMC Standing Committee of Postgrad Deans, the President of the Quebec Postgrad Deans Group, as well as the President-Elect of the Canadian Association of University Surgeons and of Breast Surgery International. He currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Collège des Medecins du Quebec.
Named outstanding General Surgery Teacher in 2000 and 2001, as well as Outstanding Teacher in the Department of Surgery in 1996, he was also named in 2005 to the Faculty Honour List for Teaching. In 2007 he was awarded the Philip Wolfson Outstanding Teacher Award by the Association for Surgical Education, which comprises more than 190 North American institutions and medical schools. Finally, from 2007 to 2009 Dr. Meterissian was an International Medical Education Travelling Scholar in Utrecht and Stockholm.