The SurgeonMasters Podcast

Pump the brakes on your week and take 10 minutes to make your life as a surgeon just a little better…

This week, we are welcoming to the mini-Podcast Dr. David Hanscom, an Orthopedic Surgeon specializing in complex spine problems. This week, Dr. Hanscom talks to us about the technique of expressive writing to help with chronic stress and anxiety. It's important to note that stress and anxiety are part of the unconscious brain which is a million times stronger than the conscious brain. This means that we can't use rational means to mitigate stress and anxiety. Instead, we need to redirect by creating an awareness and some space. This is where writing - the mechanism of writing, not the content itself - comes in, because it offers a degree of separation.  

How does he suggest we apply the technique of expressive writing? By doing the following:

• Step 1 - Put your pen to the paper and write with freedom: any random thoughts and emotions as they come to you.

• Step 2 - Do not spend time analyzing your thoughts. It's just about separation. 

• Step 3 - After writing, destroy it and do not hold into the writing.

If you’re not familiar with Dr. David Hanscom, he is a board certified orthopedic surgeon specializing in complex spine problems. He's co-founder of “Awake at the Wound,” a process which brings athletic performance principles into the operating room. He's also founder of the Direct your Own Care project (DOC), a structured rehabilitation protocol for chronic pain, and author of Back in Control: A Spine Surgeon’s Roadmap Out of Chronic Pain.

Expressive Writing is a perfect example of how surgeons can improve their effectiveness inside and outside of the OR.

Pump the brakes on your week and take 10 minutes to make your life as a surgeon just a little better…

This week, we are welcoming to the mini-Podcast Dr. Ann Marie Warren,  a licensed psychologist and Associate Investigator of Trauma Research. Dr. Warren talks to us about PTSD and associated self-care tips. We've chosen to talk about PTSD because the description of PTSD extends to people that experience the repeated or extreme traumatic event of others, including healthcare givers and their patients. Depending on how intimately involved someone is, reactions can include: disbelief, shock, sadness, anger vulnerability, fearful, being on edge, difficulty with keeping normal routine, sleeping well and changes in appetite. Dr. Warren gave us a series of self-care tips and strategy to help manage stress from trauma. 

Which active strategies does she suggest? The following:

1. Talking to others who can offer support and not doing it alone

2. Maintaining self care by getting adequate sleep, healthy eating and doing regular exercise

3. Practicing mind relaxing strategies to reduce stress and process the trauma in a positive way

If you’re not familiar with Dr. Ann Marie Warren, Ph.D., ABPP, she is a licensed psychologist and Associate Investigator of Trauma Research at the Level I Trauma Center at Baylor University Medical Center. She is also a Clinical Assistant Professor at Texas A&M in the Department of Surgery. She has been the principal investigator of several funded research projects and multi-site collaborations pertaining to the psychological aspects of physical injury, including depression, posttraumatic stress, and resilience. She is also interested in the psychological outcomes and rehabilitation of patients with traumatic brain injuries and spinal cord injuries.

The PTSD Self-Care Tips are perfect examples of how surgeons can improve their effectiveness inside and outside of the OR.

Pump the brakes on your week and take 10 minutes to make your life as a surgeon just a little better…

This week, we are welcoming to the mini-Podcast Dr. Lisa Merlo,  a licensed clinical psychologist at the University of Florida. Dr. Merlo talks to us about physician impairment and ways that we can help physician wellness. Physicians are not immune from developing the impaired conditions as they often experience sleep deprivation, personal loss and many other issues which can result in: alcohol-drug use, burnout, depression and/or cognitive decline. Hospital policies, often dissuade physicians from seeking help. As a result, there are many physicians who could be restored to health and perform better, but are not and this ends up impacting their practice and patient care.

Dr. Merlo gave us a strategy to address potential impairment: through a buddy system. The Buddy System allows for confidentiality and allows us to be be proactive in addressing potential impairment to prevent it from getting worse. 

How does she suggest to setup a Buddy System? By doing the following:

1. Identifying a colleague with whom you have frequent interaction

2. Giving them explicit permission to ask about your well-being, intervene and step up

3. Allowing the buddy to check-in with you and express concern

4. Letting the relationship be mutually beneficial

If you’re not familiar with Dr. Merlo, she is a licensed clinical psychologist. She has completed postdoctoral fellowships in clinical child/pediatric psychology and drug abuse epidemiology and prevention. She currently serves as Assistant Residency Program Director for Psychotherapy and is active in the education of medical students, residents, and other health profession students. Dr. Merlo also serves as the Director of Research for the Professionals Resource Network, Inc. (the State monitoring program for distressed and impaired healthcare professionals). As a member of the Motivational Interviewing Network of Trainers (MINT), Dr. Merlo collaborates with faculty from other colleges and universities, as well as the Area Health Education Centers across Florida, to provide training in motivational interviewing for health professions students, faculty members, tobacco cessation counselors, school personnel, and other healthcare providers.

The Buddy System is a perfect example of how surgeons can improve their effectiveness inside and outside of the OR.

Pump the brakes on your week and take 10 minutes to make your life as a surgeon just a little better…

This week, we are welcoming to the mini-Podcast Dr. Benjamin Szerlip, an Orthopedic Surgeon specializing in arthroscopic and reconstructive surgery in Austin, Texas. This week, Dr. Szerlip talks to us about looking back, and identifying things we know now, and that we wish we'd known at the start. Dr Szerlip shares how his training prepared him well for clinical practice of medicine, but how his training didn't prepare him for other aspects. He lacked knowledge in the business of medicine, including the financial knowledge needed about billing and overheads, and the importance of managing online reputation to instill confidence. Looking back is an opportunity for reflection, awareness and self-improvement that allows us to identify areas for performance improvement. 

How does he suggest we can look back? By doing the following:

• Step 1 - Look back, what do you wish you'd learned over the past few years?

• Step 2 - Then, research your options for learning more 

• Step 3 - Lastly, make a small investment to follow up on those options

If you’re not familiar with Dr. Szerlip, he is a fellowship trained Orthopedic Surgeon specializing in arthroscopic and reconstructive surgery of the shoulder and knee including joint replacement, rotator cuff repair, and other sports medicine injuries.

Looking back is a perfect example of how surgeons can improve their effectiveness inside and outside of the OR.

Pump the brakes on your week and take 10 minutes to make your life as a surgeon just a little better…

This week, we are welcoming back onto the mini-Podcast Dr. Jonathan Cabin, board-certified facial plastic & reconstructive surgeon in Beverly Hills, California. This week, Dr. Cabin will talk to us about the post-game debrief, specifically how surgeons arealso high performance athletes because need team-work and stamina. One of the shortcomings of medical training, however, is that we're not encourages to fine-tune our minds and bodies like athletes, which impacts performance. As a result, he recommends that we start studying our successes and failures in order to make improvements where necessary. 

How does he suggest we start monitoring our performance? By doing the following:

• Start taking notes about each surgery

• Spend about 2 mins after each case, recording your thoughts about the case and the surrounding variables

• Use a tool that works for you: a journal, your phone, or a program like Evernote

• Over time, you'll start to realize great opportunities for performance improvement!

If you’re not familiar with Dr. Jonathan Cabin, he is a board-certified facial plastic & reconstructive surgeon in Beverly Hills, California. His areas of expertise include surgical and non-surgical facial rejuvenation, primary and revision rhinoplasty, facial reconstruction, and migraine surgery. In addition to caring for his patients, Dr. Cabin has published textbook chapters on facial rejuvenation and rhinoplasty techniques, as well as written peer-review articles examining a wide range of topics, from ear reconstruction and the use of Botox in the treatment of facial paralysis. He is passionate about helping those in need, and has travelled abroad to Peru and China to perform much-needed surgery on children with cleft lips and palates. Outside of medicine, Dr. Cabin is an avid skier and recreational photographer, and enjoys live music, international travel and spending time with his family.

The Post-Game Debrief is a perfect example of how surgeons can improve their effectiveness inside and outside of the OR.