Planned surgeries have virtually ground to a halt owing to service closures related to the COVID-19 pandemic response. But the backlog of elective and non-emergency surgeries is building and at some point, they will have to resume. The question is how?Dr. David Urbach argues that a combined team-based and single-entry approach could help address the problem. He says the pandemic might be an opportunity for transformation of surgical services in Canada.Dr. David Urbach is surgeon-in-chief and medical director of perioperative services at Women’s College Hospital in Toronto, senior scientist at ICES and Women’s College Research Institute, and professor of surgery at the University of Toronto.He co-wrote a commentary with Dr. Danielle Martin on the topic.The commentary is published in CMAJ: www.cmaj.ca/lookup/doi/10.1503/cmaj.200791Podcast transcript: https://www.cmaj.ca/transcript-200791CMAJ COVID-19 resource page: www.cmaj.ca/covid-19-----------------------------------Subscribe to CMAJ Podcasts on Apple Podcasts or your favourite podcast app. You can also follow us directly on our SoundCloud page or you can visit www.cmaj.ca/page/multimedia/podcasts.