HealthCare

What is the most rewarding part of being a trauma surgeon?

The True Rewards of Being a Trauma Surgeon

The most rewarding things, first is true of any health care provider, which is being useful to someone when they're in need. The second is working as part of a team. In trauma surgery, the entire team has to work in concert or else nothing gets done. It is absolutely not a virtuoso specialty. And then the third thing is the sense of accomplishment when you're working with your hands. It's true of a lot of jobs. Forget in medicine and surgery, but a lot of jobs looking at something that you did with your hands and having that sense of accomplishment. I did this.

Being useful to someone in need, working as part of a team, and the sense of accomplishment when you work with your hands are the most rewarding things about being a health care provider.

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The most rewarding aspects of being a trauma surgeon are being useful to someone in need, working as part of a team, and experiencing a sense of accomplishment through hands-on work. Like any healthcare provider, the ability to be of service to others when they require assistance is deeply fulfilling. In trauma surgery, teamwork is crucial, as the entire team must collaborate effectively for successful outcomes. It's not a specialty that relies solely on individual expertise. Lastly, there's a unique satisfaction in looking at something you've accomplished with your own hands, which holds true for many professions. Being able to say I did this can bring a significant sense of accomplishment.

How does the decision-making process differ for multi-cavity penetrating trauma compared to other types of trauma?

Key takeaway: The crucial question in multi-cavity trauma: Where to make the incision?

So decision-making in multi-cavity penetrating trauma comes down to a single question. What is going to kill my patient first? And what cavity do I need to open first? And in what order do I need to make my incisions? Really, the question is, where do I make my incision? That's what it comes down to. Once you've addressed these things in order, then you've done the patient a world of good. But it doesn't do any good going after a gunshot wound to the brain, believe it or not, if your patient is going to bleed to death from a cable injury before you start to do anything significant with that.

Decision-making in multi-cavity penetrating trauma comes down to determining which cavity needs to be opened first, and where the incision should be made. This will help ensure that the patient's most life-threatening injury is treated first.

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In multi-cavity penetrating trauma, the decision-making process revolves around a crucial question: What is the most immediate threat to the patient's life? It's essential to determine which cavity needs to be addressed first and in what order incisions should be made. The primary focus is on deciding where to make the incision. Once these priorities are addressed in the correct order, it greatly benefits the patient. However, it would not be effective to prioritize treating a gunshot wound to the brain if the patient is at risk of bleeding to death from another injury.

Can you provide an example of a time when you had to make a quick decision with insufficient data? How did you handle it?

Trusting intuition saved a life in critical medical decision

Last year I had a young man whose blood pressure was very low. After a car accident, he was crashing. He was fast negative, CT scan didn't show anything, we didn't really know why. And we had a hunch, and I opened his chest, and it turned out that he had ruptured his superior vena cava. And we managed to fix him. And he's doing fine now. But that was something where, based on the data alone, there was no reason to conclude that that's what was hurting him. But I just had a hunch.

Last year, I was able to save a patient who had crashed after a car accident by following my hunch and opening his chest which revealed that he had ruptured his superior vena cava, which we were then able to repair.

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Last year, I encountered a situation where a young man's blood pressure dropped significantly after a car accident. Despite performing a CT scan that didn't show any abnormalities, we couldn't determine the cause of his decline. However, I had a hunch and decided to open his chest. It turned out that he had ruptured his superior vena cava. Thankfully, we were able to repair the injury successfully, and he is now doing well. This was an instance where there wasn't enough data to support the conclusion, but my intuition guided me in making a quick decision.

What advice would you give to someone who is considering a career change or going back to school to pursue a different area of expertise?

Embrace the Journey: Career Change as a Transformative Experience

I would say if you're considering a change to a career that requires a period of education or training to regard that period of time as the career and not preparation for the career you want. So if you are thinking of going to medical school because you want to become a doctor, don't think of it as I need to do four years of medical school and then I need to do four to ten years of residency in order to become a doctor. The whole thing is the career that you're choosing. It's about really the journey and not just the destination. If you start thinking about I have to start, I have to get through this in order to do the thing that I want to do, when you're talking about ten years of residency training, that is discouraging. I never ever looked to the end and counted the years or the months or certainly not the days until I wasn't attending. It was all just about the next day and what I was doing at that moment.

When considering a career change, view the period of education or training as the entire career rather than just preparation for the career you want. Don't focus on the end goal and the amount of time it will take to reach it, but instead focus on the journey and the day-to-day tasks that come with it.

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If you're considering a career change or going back to school to pursue a different area of expertise, my advice would be to view the period of education or training as the career itself, rather than just preparation for the career you desire. For example, if you're thinking of going to medical school to become a doctor, don't see it as a hurdle of four years of medical school plus four to ten years of residency before becoming a doctor. The entire journey is part of the career you're choosing. It's about embracing the process and not solely focusing on the end goal. If you constantly think about how many years or months or even days are left until you reach your desired point, especially when considering long periods like ten years of residency training, it can be discouraging. Personally, I never fixated on the end and counted down the time until I finished my training. Instead, I embraced each day and focused on what I was doing in that particular moment.

How did you get started in your area of expertise?

Surgeon's captivating journey from boredom to saving lives

About five years into my career as an attending vascular surgeon, I noticed two things. First of all, I was starting to get a little bored. And the second thing was that the cases that I did for vascular trauma were by far my favorite things. And so, after discussion with my family, I decided to go back to fellowship, and I did a fellowship in trauma and critical care. After that, I came back to the Shock Trauma Center, and now I practice as entirely trauma surgery with a particular focus on vascular trauma.

After five years as a vascular surgeon, I decided to go back to fellowship and specialize in trauma surgery with a particular focus on vascular trauma.

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I got started in my area of expertise after about five years as a vascular surgeon. I realized that I was becoming a bit bored and discovered that vascular trauma cases were my absolute favorite. After discussing it with my family, I made the decision to pursue a fellowship in trauma and critical care. Following the fellowship, I returned to the Shock Trauma Center where I now specialize in trauma surgery, with a specific focus on vascular trauma.

In your opinion, what personal qualities or characteristics does someone need to become a successful surgeon?

Key to Success: Compassion, Humility, and Teamwork in Surgery

First and foremost, be a fundamentally decent human being. Being a good surgeon is not an excuse to be a jerk. In fact, being a jerk will keep you from being a decent surgeon. Compassion, humility, being a good communicator. You need to be a natural leader in the sense that when you're in an operating room, people will listen to you, but at the same time, you need to listen to everyone else and you need to make it clear that you do listen to everyone else when you're making those decisions. A sense of calm, a sense of proportion, and a sense of teamwork.

Be a fundamentally decent human being, have compassion and humility, be a good communicator and leader, and have a sense of calm, proportion, and teamwork.

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In my opinion, the personal qualities and characteristics someone needs to become a successful surgeon are compassion, humility, and effective communication skills. It's important to be a fundamentally decent human being and not let being a surgeon justify being unkind or disrespectful. Compassion towards patients and colleagues is vital. Additionally, being a good communicator is crucial for effectively leading in the operating room and actively listening to others' input when making decisions. Having a sense of calm, proportion, and teamwork are also essential qualities for success in surgery.

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Dr. Kundi is a surgeon who specializes in general surgery, surgical critical care and vascular surgery. He has particular interest in the treatment of injuries to the arteries and veins. Dr. Kundi knows that complications from injuries to blood vessels can continue to affect people for years following their recovery. He understands that from the moment patients arrive at the Shock Trauma Center, they are starting a relationship with surgeons that will last long after they are cleared to leave the hospital and return home. He is deeply committed to maintaining positive relationships with patients and improving their health outcomes. Dr. Kundi is proud to be a part of the Shock Trauma Center team at University of Maryland Medical Center, the only hospital in the country with a division devoted to treating vascular trauma.

Neither AnyQuestion nor its Experts provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment or otherwise provide professional healthcare services.

Dr. Rishi Kundi, MD