r/surgery

How painful was the recovery, and how long did it take before you could walk and return to normal activities?

I’m a current MS3 trying to narrow down specialties. I was an ICU RN before medical school and have been trying to decide on my path to critical care. So far I’ve been most drawn toward the ACS/SCC pathway.

I know training will be hard. I’m more-so wondering if there are any attendings out there that can shed light to what life looks after training (lifestyle, schedule, compensation, pros/cons of the specialty you didn’t consider, would you choose it again, longevity of the specialty, etc). Any insight is appreciated!

Are there any surgeons or surgical team members here whose hospitals participate in the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP)?

I’m a new Surgical Clinical Reviewer and would love to hear directly from surgeons about what makes NSQIP data useful and well received. I’ve heard that teams can sometimes view the data as punitive or unreliable, and I’d really like to avoid that at my hospital.

For surgeons involved with NSQIP, what can a Surgical Clinical Reviewer do to build trust and make the data feel collaborative and meaningful rather than punitive?

This thought has been on my mind for about a week now, if there are any current/former surgeons I gotta ask how the hell do you cut into people all day…. And then go home and cut into a steak for example and not freak the hell out?? I mean you genuinely have to be some level of psycho to pull that off I’m so sorry. I truly just seek to dive into the mental health of our surgeons cause they’re like literally the most important people ever

Edit: thank you so much for all of the replies!! As well as your service. It’s been a trip reading through all these comments truly lol

At home finally and recovering from my robotic fundoplication surgery at St. Paul’s (I was told we have the only medical facility in western Canada that offers this through robotics). I have not confirmed this, but if true, well done Saskatchewan.

Today I’m reflecting on the incredible care I received and the privilege to be a Canadian while not going broke trying to pay for that care. I will be sending a thank to the staff directly but I just wanted to mention this so some people could see that our health care system is not all doom and gloom. This was not my experience at all.

Every single member of the team—from the pre-op nurses and surgical team to the recovery staff—treated me with the utmost dignity, compassion, and patience. I felt completely safe and well-informed every step of the way. Thank you all for your tireless commitment to your patients. You truly make a difference.

Have a great weekend everyone.

Hey everyone!

I’ve been an OR circulator for about two years now and I’m constantly wanting to improve. I want to be the circulator that people request haha.

I’d love to know what a circulator does that stands out in a good way and if you all have any tips to improve, or even little details that you appreciate.

Thank you!

I'm a medical student trying to get a realistic understanding of what it's like for women who choose general surgery as a career.

I'd love to hear from anyone with experience—female surgeons, male surgeons, residents, attendings/consultants, or anyone who has worked closely with female colleagues in surgery.

Some questions I have:

- Have you noticed any gender-related challenges or biases in general surgery? If so, how common are they today?

- Do female surgeons generally receive the same opportunities for training, operating, leadership, and career progression?

- How manageable is the lifestyle in the long term, especially for those who want to balance family and career?

- What are the long-term career options after general surgery (private practice, academics, fellowships, subspecialties, etc.)?

- Are there any misconceptions about women in surgery that you've found to be untrue?

- If you've worked with female surgeons, what has your experience been like? Have things changed over the years?

- Looking back, would you encourage a woman who is genuinely interested in surgery to pursue it? Why or why not?

Thanks in advance!

Note: I can't edit the title, but I wasn't referring specifically to General Surgery as a specialty. I meant surgery as a career overall, including different surgical specialties, and was asking about the lifestyle and career from that broader perspective.

General surgery chief, finishing July 2027. Trying to figure out how open fellowship spots surface once the formal cycles have closed. Didn't match in the specialties I was going for.

From what I can tell, the 2027 cycles all resolved months ago. FC matched in June, SSO in July, CGSO in June. I've found a few programs that apply directly outside any match, but they only turned up by clicking through consortium pages one at a time. There doesn't seem to be a central place to look.

Three questions if anyone has insight:

1. Where do post-match or off-cycle vacancies actually get posted? I've seen MedResidency, Signout, and the SAGES board. The FC job board looks like it carries fellowship openings but sits behind a current-fellows login, which seems backwards.
2. Does anyone know of specific programs currently open for a 2027 start that I could reach out to directly?
3. Which programs routinely fill outside the match, in any year? Mainly interested in Breast, MIS, and hernia/AWR.

Appreciate any leads or advice!

Everyone's telling me to change my specialty since surgery is pretty tough. I got into thoracics so it's two yrs general and then three thoracics. With the vision of going into thoracic oncology and research side, tell me is this a realistic plan or just imaginative? If my life's gonna be hell I'll have to change my specialty. Are there people who realize it later and change specialties?

Ciao a tutti, ho fatto la frenulotomia ma dove c'era il frenulo è rimasta attaccata una pallina di carne... devo farmi vedere?

I'll try to make this short.

I had a great app transferring to uni. 4.0, honors society president, published in a book, much volunteering, clinical hours, non-profit work.

I transfer to a high-level uni but got piled on with issues. Family, health issues, abuse, (my mom has mental health issues that flared up). Eventually had to drop school and work and was homeless.

For a 3 year period I wasn't sure if I could be a doctor with all my personal issues. Money, no support system, health issues. Did my "back-up" career idea and hated it. Had an online business. I was able to support myself with it. But no matter what I tried with alternative careers, nothing matched my passion for medicine and neuroscience.

Decided to come back to uni when I qualified for financial aid. Made a comeback, graduated with 3.84 Neuro B.S.. Now in my mid-20's.

After graduation, I'm now homeless again. Living in car. Finally got a clinical job and am trying to get into a lab to get research hours as well (volunteer is all I can get). I know it sounds insane, but the job market is horrible and I've been turned down for 5 months from everything else.

Thats basically my situation, but I want to know how to increase my chances of being able to match into neuro. I'm planning on 2 gap years to get my app on track (clinical, shadowing, volunteer, research), but with the lab I'll be working in, I'm not paid. I'm unsure if I will get pubs either because it's a neuro lab and I know publishing can take a long time. I'm planning on staying in the role until matriculation in 2029, if I can.

My biggest worry is being seen as a red flag to neurosurgery programs. I have such huge gaps in my hx, I'm sure I'll be questioned about it. But I absolutely cannot see myself doing anything else with my life except this. I understand the long path, it does not bother me. I am willing to make the sacrifices.

Does anybody have any advice on how to best position myself?

Thank you.

Just curious if anyone has a bit of info. I just registered for my CCA. Have recertified once now, obviously with the big exam. How is this one? Couple questions in between cases, or what? Thanks all.

Hi all! My dad is currently a few days into recovery from AAA surgery and it’s been rough so far. When he gets home I want to make sure I’m prepared and can help him to be as comfortable as possible. I was wondering if anyone could provide some advice/ideas as to what I could do/get him that would make his recovery the easiest and most comfortable for him

I'm going for my LAP surgery on Thursday morning. What was your recovery after that? Needing some insight to know how long I have to be off work and whatnot. Please let me know. Thanks.

Operating-room ergonomics is often measured with posture snapshots. Those can find real physical strain, but they may miss how load changes across an entire case.

I would separate the assessment into three domains:

1. Physical: position, duration, reach, repetition, and recovery.
2. Cognitive: visual attention, alarms, verification work, task switching, and fatigue.
3. Organizational: room setup, staffing, turnover pressure, breaks, and access to adjustable equipment.

For surgeons and OR staff, which whole-case ergonomic measure would reveal something your current assessment misses? I am especially interested in measures that would be useful for improvement.