You Can't Backslab a Broken Heart

08/20/23 • 40 min

So you’ve got into specialty training? Made it to the promised land? You can turn it on to autopilot and cruise your way to the end right...?

Wrong.

Buckle up and strap yourself in! This is where shit gets real.

Many trainees will be absolutely fine, but what if you’re one of the ones who aren’t? Complaints? SUI? Complications? Failing FRCS? All these things knock your confidence which is essential for both survival and progression in surgery? So what do you do? How do you go on?

As eminent Gotham city physician Dr. Thomas Wayne once rhetorically asked his son: “Why do we fall Bruce? So we can learn to pick ourselves up again...”

Granted, even though we’re a) surgeons not physicians, b) not billionaires and c) not Batman...the sentiment still holds true.

Today we’re joined by local lad, orthopod extraordinaire and all-round top bloke Rich Unsworth (Health Education North West) as we talk about the journey from the highest highs to the lowest lows, and how you pick yourself up, dust yourself off and find the will to carry on.

It's a long slog to the end, you might end up broken, and like the name of the episode suggests, 6 weeks in a plaster cast sometimes just isn't enough....

Pinto, A & Faiz, O & Bicknell, C & Vincent, C. (2014). Acute traumatic stress among surgeons after major surgical complications. The American Journal of Surgery. 208 (4). dot: 10.1016/j.amjsurg.2014.06.018.

Dean, E. Surgeons and mental health support. (2020). The Bulletin of the Royal College of Surgeons of England 102 (6). dot: https://doi.org/10.1308/rcsbull.2020.169

Email us: [email protected]

Twitter: @NW_surgical (www.twitter.com/NW_surgical)

Reddit: u/surgicalcareersNW (www.reddit.com/u/surgicalcareersNW)

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

So you’ve got into specialty training? Made it to the promised land? You can turn it on to autopilot and cruise your way to the end right...?

Wrong.

Buckle up and strap yourself in! This is where shit gets real.

As eminent Gotham city physician Dr. Thomas Wayne once rhetorically asked his son: “Why do we fall Bruce? So we can learn to pick ourselves up again...”

Granted, even though we’re a) surgeons not physicians, b) not billionaires and c) not Batman...the sentiment still holds true.

It's a long slog to the end, you might end up broken, and like the name of the episode suggests, 6 weeks in a plaster cast sometimes just isn't enough....

Dean, E. Surgeons and mental health support. (2020). The Bulletin of the Royal College of Surgeons of England 102 (6). dot: https://doi.org/10.1308/rcsbull.2020.169

Email us: [email protected]

Twitter: @NW_surgical (www.twitter.com/NW_surgical)

Reddit: u/surgicalcareersNW (www.reddit.com/u/surgicalcareersNW)

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Previous Episode

Nobody Puts Trainees in the Corner! Pt. 2

As the unstoppable bullying endemic wreaks havoc, bringing surgical trainees to their knees with widespread anarchy and chaos, one man must face his greatest challenge to battle injustice. However, is the @orthopodreg prepared to walk the fine line between defender and avenger, hero and vigilante?

Whilst that is just the synopsis of The Dark Knight (with a few names/details changed), it rings true for detailing the mammoth scale of the problem. In Part 2 of our look at bullying, we're privileged to be joined by the shining beacon of justice that is Simon Fleming.

The self-described misfit who has long been the target of bullies, starting as a fat kid, and then joining a speciality with the worst reputation for bullying. He made it his British Orthopaedic Trainees Association (BOTA) campaign pledge to tackle bullying at its root, and then dedicated the last decade of his life to doing so, being met with scorn, criticism and vitriol. He’s been the proverbial lightning rod for the wrath of the establishment, and the metaphorical shield for trainees to hide behind, despite constant threats to his training, career, and even his life.

We talk about his life’s work, his personal experiences of bullying, how far the movement has come, where we are as a profession now, and how he will continue in his crusade as a consultant.

He is the hero that we as trainees deserve, but not the one we need right now. So he will be hunted. Because he can take it. A watchful protector. A not-so-silent guardian. Wait... is he actually Batman?

Simon's Twitter account: www.twitter.com/orthopodreg

One of Simon's most visible TED talks: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aVkGiziPY1o

Simon Fleming: I launched an anti-bullying campaign to change culture in healthcare (2019). BMJ: 365:l2325 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.l2325

Fleming, S. and Fisher, R.A., Sexual assault in surgery: a painful truth (2021). The Bulletin of the Royal College of Surgeons of England, 103(6), pp.282-285.

https://doi.org/10.1308/rcsbull.2021.106

Email us: [email protected]

Twitter: @NW_surgical (www.twitter.com/NW_surgical)

Reddit: u/surgicalcareersNW (www.reddit.com/u/surgicalcareersNW)

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Next Episode

Where's Your Head At?

As we discussed in the previous episode, sometimes life and the job sticks the boot in, and kicks you when you’re already down. Picking ourselves up is easier said than done.

Psychology is a vital aspect of any high-performance industry because we need to believe we can do it; not just for us, but also for the people who rely on us. Sometimes we need extra help to find the right headspace.

Today we’re joined by Nicola Forshaw, counsellor, therapist and professional coach and we talk about how coaching and/or mentoring can get you back in the zone.

What’s the difference between the two? How does a good mentor mentor? What benefits does it bring? How do we combat performance anxiety? How much time do we really need in the stretch zone? Is it bad if we like wallowing in the comfort zone? Are we on the highway to the danger zone?!

Look, stop asking questions and just listen; all will be revealed. Now drop and gimme 20!

You can't say 'danger zone' without listening to Kenny Loggins: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=siwpn14IE7E

Nicola's endeavours - Nine Coaching, Teaching and Wellbeing: https://www.nineteaching.com/

Gagnon, L & Abbasi, N. (2018). Systematic review of randomized controlled trials on the role of coaching in surgery to improve learner outcomes. The American Journal of Surgery, 216(1), 140–146. https://do.org/10.1016/j.amjsurg.2017.05.003

Lin, J & Reddy, R (2019). Teaching, mentorship, and coaching in surgical education. Thoracic surgery clinics, 29(3), 311-320. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.thorsurg.2019.03.008

Email us: [email protected]

Twitter: @NW_surgical (www.twitter.com/NW_surgical)

Reddit: u/surgicalcareersNW (www.reddit.com/u/surgicalcareersNW)

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.