The SurgeonMasters Podcast

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

Jeff welcomes to the podcast Otolaryngology surgeon, James Naples, MD.

In this podcast, we discuss the surgical mindset. If you’re a performance-driven surgeon, it can be difficult at times to manage the challenges of the perfectionist mindset. We expect our best every time and the best out of those around us.

There are times when we struggle in ways that appear technical but are more psychological, how our hands function is simply a manifestation of what our mind is doing. As a result, it’s important to address the performance mindset so that we can improve efficacy across the board.

What steps does Jim suggest we take to improve our mindset as surgeons?

• Step 1 - Rehearse & Visualize. Surgery is 1% perspiration and 99% preparation. Rehearse and visualize important events before they happen so you’re better prepared.
• Step 2 - Script All Possible Outcomes. If you think through every possible outcome and how to react to each, you will be fully prepared for the procedure.
• Step 3 - Limit Distractions. This may be controversial, but it’s important to remove all distractions (including music) from the operating room to clear your mind and find readiness. [Jim and I may have some different opinions on this, which we will share in a future podcast.]

Most importantly, PRACTICE your surgical mindset to attain the best outcome!

BIO:

Dr. James Naples is the Residency Program Director of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery and a Clinical Advisor at Harvard Medical School. He has mentored residents and students through various stages of their training, and focuses on ways to improve their performance. Clinically, he is interested in cochlear implant, Acoustic Neuroma and vestibular disorders. Dr. Naples earned his medical degree from the University of Connecticut School of Medicine and stayed there to complete his residency training in otolaryngology–head and neck surgery. He then completed his fellowship training in neurotology at the Perelman School of Medical at the University of Pennsylvania.

SurgeonMasters is a physician peer community dedicated to improving the personal and professional well-being of physicians.

Join your colleagues online at SurgeonMasters.com for events, resources, and more.

PRACTICE Your Best!

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

Jeff welcomes to the podcast physician scientist, Rachel Draelos, MD, PhD.

The Electronic Medical Record (EMR) is probably one of the leading causes of physician frustration. EMRs are “broken” in a few different ways. First, the user interface is poor and confusing. Second, the underlying data is messy and fragmented. This limits what you can do in the interface. Rachel’s company is working on creating a new Electronic Health Record (EHR) that’s easy to use and crafts the data specifically to unleash the power of AI in medicine to help with all kinds of different administrative tasks. 

AI is a contentious topic in medicine. Some are excited about its potential, while others are nervous about its implications. 

What steps does Rachel suggest we do to better leverage AI in medicine?

• Step 1 - Understand the different types of AI. Artificial intelligence comes in a variety of different forms. Machine learning and neural networks are forms of AI that can be extremely beneficial in the field of medicine. 
• Step 2 - Identify key areas of administrative burden. These could include prior authorizations, billing, coding, etc.
• Step 3 - Spend some time on Google searching for AI tools that can automate those tasks. 

Most importantly, practice leveraging tech to mitigate administrative burdens!

BIO: Rachel Draelos, MD, PhD

Rachel is a physician scientist, and the first person to graduate from Duke University with an M.D. and a Ph.D. in Computer Science. Her research focuses on novel artificial intelligence methods development for medical applications. She has published across multiple areas of artificial intelligence, including computer vision, natural language processing, explainable AI, and expert systems. Her machine learning models have been applied to medical images, medical notes, EHR data, and genetic data. Dr. Draelos is the Founder & CEO of Cydoc, a health AI company. The Cydoc Smart Patient Intake Form generates medical notes from patient intake forms, saving 10 minutes per patient visit. Dr. Draelos is also the author of the popular AI and medicine blog Glass Box, and the Founding Consultant of Vismedica AI, a firm that offers healthcare and AI consulting services.

SurgeonMasters is a physician peer community dedicated to improving the personal and professional well-being of physicians.

Join your colleagues online at SurgeonMasters.com for events, resources, and more.

PRACTICE Your Best!

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

Jeff welcomes to the podcast pediatric physician and coach, Stacia Dearmin.

The unfortunate truth is that most surgeons in the United States will be named in a malpractice lawsuit at some point in their careers. Despite that, it’s a topic we don’t often discuss.

Most compassionate surgeons are hit hard when a patient has an unforeseen negative outcome. Adding a malpractice lawsuit on top of a negative outcome can be overwhelming and injurious to a surgeon physically, mentally, and emotionally. 

What steps does Stacia suggest we do to become better equipped to deal with malpractice litigation?

• Step 1 - Connect with someone about your personal experience in a protected space. The isolation that stems from a malpractice lawsuit exacerbates suffering. We need other people to lean on when we’re suffering. 
• Step 2 - Educate yourself about malpractice litigation. Recognize that, as doctors and not attorneys, we are not experts in litigation. However, learning the basics of the process can help us better prepare.

Most importantly, practice preparation for potential malpractice litigation!

SurgeonMasters is a physician peer community dedicated to improving the personal and professional well-being of physicians.

Join your colleagues online at SurgeonMasters.com for events, resources, and more.

PRACTICE Your Best!

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

Jeff welcomes to the podcast, leadership and health coach, Becky Wolfe.

During her career as a Physician Assistant, Becky noticed that the healthcare system was treating a lot of chronic diseases but not doing as much to help patients get well. That disconnect and frustration resulted in Becky pursuing a career in health coaching.

Now Becky’s primary coaching focus is helping teams function optimally. You need to have high levels of trust in order for teams to function well. Every member of any healthcare team has the same ultimate goal in mind – the patient outcome. It’s important for each member to have a clear role and identity in attaining that goal. If everyone has a solid understanding of their role, communication will improve drastically. 

What steps does Becky suggest to help teams function optimally?

• Step 1 - Double Down on Communication. It’s the building block of any successful team. You need more communication, not less. Schedule regular meetings to get everyone on the same page efficiently.
• Step 2 - Build Deeper Layers of Trust. Get to know the members of your team on a more personal level. Even if it may feel a bit awkward or too personal, ask them about their hobbies and interests outside of work. This will create a much deeper bond that will help improve communication and teamwork.

Most importantly, PRACTICE people development to build stronger teams!

SurgeonMasters is a physician peer community dedicated to improving the personal and professional well-being of physicians.

Join your colleagues online at SurgeonMasters.com for events, resources, and more.

PRACTICE Your Best!

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

Jeff welcomes to the podcast physician coach Joseph Kaczmarczyk, DO, MPH, MBA.

Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a cascade of seemingly endless changes. While everyone’s experience of the pandemic has been unique, there is one aspect that’s shared between physicians and patients alike: No one is immune to change. But the change brought on by the advent of COVID-19 was unlike anything we’d seen before.

The new normal for change is “3-D change” - which is defined by three dimensions: (1) it’s perpetual; (2) it’s pervasive; (3) it’s exponential. With this new 3-D change, we need to adapt our leadership styles accordingly. Sapient leadership invokes humanism and refers to the quality of wisdom and to being human. 

What steps does Joe suggest we do to practice sapient leadership?

• Step 1 - Think of a change you’ve experienced. How would you characterize that change? Was it pervasive, perpetual, or exponential?
• Step 2 -  Consider how the experience of that change impacted you. How did it alter your thinking?
• Step 3 -  Ponder what you are going to do differently in the future as a result of that change?

Most importantly, practice sapient leadership!

SurgeonMasters is a physician peer community dedicated to improving the personal and professional well-being of physicians.

Join your colleagues online at SurgeonMasters.com for events, resources, and more.

PRACTICE Your Best!

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

Jeff welcomes to the podcast author, international speaker, and consultant in performance and sport psychology, Dr. Haley Perlus.

The principles of sport / performance psychology have many applications for surgeons, who are always striving for peak performance. There is a lot that we, as surgeons, can learn from professional athletes. 

Professional athletes don’t recover when they have the time. They recover as a mandatory part of their performance program. Surgeons can do the same. You can’t be resilient or clear of mind if you don’t give yourself time to recover.

What steps does Haley suggest we do to incorporate recovery into our practices?

• Step 1 - Recognize that recovery is non-negotiable. It is a mandatory component of our performance programs.
• Step 2 - Focus on short recovery bouts consistently throughout the day.

Most importantly, practice recovery!

SurgeonMasters is a physician peer community dedicated to improving the personal and professional well-being of physicians.

Join your colleagues online at SurgeonMasters.com for events, resources, and more.

PRACTICE Your Best!

• Component 1 - Issues Management. This consists of performing an environmental scan to identify any issues with the potential to become crises, generating a risk image, obtaining stakeholders’ views of these threats, and to ascertain the probable consequences.
• Component 2 -  Planning & Prevention. This consists of establishing a proactive policy to respond to potential crises and preparing contingency plans.
• Component 3 - The Crisis. This consists of evaluating your response to the crisis, targeting your message to the appropriate audiences, and minimizing harm to your stakeholders.
• Component 4 - The Post-Crisis. This consists of monitoring the crisis, informing stakeholders of your actions, evaluating how the crisis management plan worked.

SurgeonMasters is a physician peer community dedicated to improving the personal and professional well-being of physicians.

Join your colleagues online at SurgeonMasters.com for events, resources, and more.

PRACTICE Your Best!

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

Carla welcomes orthopaedic surgeon and coach, Jeffrey M Smith, MD, FACS, PCC to the 100th episode of the SurgeonMasters podcast!

A huge part of the SurgeonMasters podcast has been inspiring others by highlighting issues specific to physicians and surgeons. These important conversations have been a refuge and a resource for medical professionals to discuss topics that typically don’t get much focus. 

This podcast was born from Jeff’s interest in coaching and how it can improve the lives of physicians and surgeons at every level. Coaching is something that can help anyone in the medical profession.

Thank you for making the SurgeonMasters Podcast a success for 100 episodes. Look forward to more high-level conversations on the mini-podcast in the future!

Most importantly, PRACTICE Inspiring Passion in yourself and others!

SurgeonMasters is a physician peer community dedicated to improving the personal and professional well-being of physicians.

Join your colleagues online at SurgeonMasters.com for events, resources, and more.

PRACTICE Your Best!

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

Jeff welcomes to the podcast physician leader and coach, Joseph M. Kaczmarczyk, DO, MPH, MBA.

Although crisis leadership and crisis management are often used interchangeably, there is an important distinction between the two. Crisis leadership is knowing the right things to do, while crisis management is knowing how to do things right. 

All physicians are leaders. There are six critical aspects of crisis leadership:

1. Sense Making
2. Decision Making and Coordinating
3. Meaning Making
4. Accounting
5. Learning
6. Preparing

What should a physician know about crisis leadership for crises you can’t predict? After a crisis appears to be “over” it’s not actually over until an AAR (After Action Review) is completed. This review dives into what was expected to happen; what actually happened; what went well; and what can be improved. 

What does Joseph suggest we do to practice good leadership in response to a crisis?

• Step 1 - Recall the Crisis. In the crisis, were you the crisis leader, crisis manager, or both? Did you perform any of the six crisis leadership tasks?
• Step 2 -  Ask Yourself the 4 AAR Questions. What was expected to happen? What actually happened? What went well? What can be improved?

Most importantly, PRACTICE crisis leadership!

SurgeonMasters is a physician peer community dedicated to improving the personal and professional well-being of physicians.

Join your colleagues online at SurgeonMasters.com for events, resources, and more.

PRACTICE Your Best!

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

Jeff welcomes to the podcast Carla Smith, MD. Carla is an orthopaedic surgeon, educator, and coach.

As physicians, we talk a lot about having compassion for our patients but we don’t really talk about compassion for ourselves. It’s essential that we call attention to this compassion gap so we can improve our practices and our lives.

Carla has been through the SurgeonMasters Physician Coach Training program and is now working as a physician coach. The SurgeonMasters approach to coaching provides the opportunity to identify skills that we want to obtain or improve, with the ultimate goal of helping ourselves or others. 

What steps does Carla suggest we do to have more compassion for ourselves?

• Step 1 - Recognize how you’re reacting to things. This can be something as simple as failing to wake up early to exercise. Are you beating yourself up for small things like this?
• Step 2 - Take a beat. Don’t immediately jump into a negative headspace and beat yourself up. Take a moment to think about how you’re going to react.
• Step 3 - Show compassion to yourself. Don’t be so hard on yourself! Give yourself grace.

 Most importantly, start to PRACTICE self-compassion! 

Guest: Carla Smith, MD
Carla is a fellowship-trained orthopedic trauma surgeon. She is also a surgeon educator and surgeon coach. As former chair of the department of surgery at a very large urban hospital, she saw firsthand how adverse events and lack of collegiality impact physicians, which steered her toward peer support and coaching. She views physician empowerment as a way to give back to her community and foster physician longevity. Balancing work with her passion for humanitarian service – both domestic and abroad – has been one of her most rewarding accomplishments. In her free time, Carla values spending time outdoors with her family. 

SurgeonMasters is a physician peer community dedicated to improving the personal and professional well-being of physicians.

Join your colleagues online at SurgeonMasters.com for events, resources, and more.

PRACTICE Your Best!

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

Jeff welcomes to the podcast orthopaedic surgeon, Wendell Cole MD. Dr. Cole is also the host of the popular orthopaedic podcast, Nailed It Ortho. 

The Nailed It podcast grew from Dr. Cole's desire to learn more about various orthopeadic topics while in medical school. It has since grown into covering a wide range of issues that surgeons face - many of which are not explicitly taught in medical school.

Podcasting has become a great creative outlet for Dr. Cole. It has also helped him realize the importance of creative outlets. In the medical field, we're often fixated on the technical aspects of our work so much that we tend to ignore creativity.

What steps does Wendell suggest we do to nurture our creative outlets?

• Step 1 - Think back to what you enjoyed doing as a kid. For example, maybe you loved to draw.
• Step 2 -  Figure out a way to incorporate that into your life and career. If you loved to draw, think about how you can bring that into your work. 

Most importantly, start to practice your creative outlets!

Guest: Wendell "Cody" Cole MD

Wendell is a current Orthopaedic Surgery chief resident at Tulane University SOM. He started college at the age of 16 and started medical school when he was 20 years old. He graduated from Morehouse School of Medicine in 2018. He is also a best--selling author, having written "The Med School Survival Kit- How to Breeze Through Medical School WHile Crushing Your Exams", which currently has over 120 reviews and 5 stars on Amazon. He also is the co-host of Nailed It Ortho, a 5-star orthopaedic surgery podcast covering high-yield topics with more than 200 episodes published featuring experts from the field of Orthopaedic Surgery. He has also published numerous articles in peer-reviewed journals, has written multiple textbook chapters, and has presented his research at a national level. He is set to start a sports medicine fellowship in 2023 at NYU- Hospital for Joint Disease.

Find Dr. Cole at Nailed It Ortho. 

SurgeonMasters is a physician peer community dedicated to improving the personal and professional well-being of physicians.

Join your colleagues online at SurgeonMasters.com for events, resources, and more.

PRACTICE Your Best!

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

Jeff welcomes to the podcast board-certified pediatrician and founder of Doctoring Differently®, Dr. Naomi Lawrence-Reid.

Doctoring Differently® is focused on teaching physicians that they can create the lives and careers that they deserve. Many physicians are unaware of the plethora of professional options available to them. We’re often taught that there are only a few career paths to choose from. But there are so many alternative options that can lead to better, more fulfilling careers.

What steps does Naomi suggest we do to build the careers of our dreams?

• Step 1 - Understand that there are no rules for a career in medicine! The traditional career paths are not the only ones available. 
• Step 2 -  Survey your career options. This can include opportunities inside and outside of medicine. Explore what others have done and even what no one has done before.
• Step 3 - Begin the process that will create the career that you want. Take action and pursue the career of your dreams.

Most importantly, begin to PRACTICE doctoring differently!

Guest Bio: 

Dr. Naomi Lawrence-Reid, M.D. is a board-certified pediatrician and founder of Doctoring Differently®, a company uniquely centered around educating and supporting physicians in their pursuit of unconventional clinical and non-clinical career paths. Dr. Lawrence-Reid created this platform after personally exploring many of the flexible and lucrative job opportunities that physicians are not taught at any point in medical education. She now utilizes her unique methodology to educate physicians on creating careers that prioritize their individual interests while promoting lifelong curiosity, creativity, and satisfaction in medicine.

Dr. Lawrence-Reid is a proud Boston-area native now warmly based in San Diego, California. She is a graduate of Wake Forest University, University of Massachusetts Medical School, and she completed pediatrics residency at the Children’s Hospital at Montefiore/Einstein in Bronx, New York. She has served as a staff physician at Rady Children’s Hospital, Kaiser Permanente, and various other southern California hospitals. In addition to Doctoring Differently®, Dr. Lawrence-Reid is owner and medical director of NLR Med Aesthetics and she remains a vocal advocate for health and safety policies that protect the children of San Diego county.

SurgeonMasters is a physician peer community dedicated to improving the personal and professional well-being of physicians.

Join your colleagues online at SurgeonMasters.com for events, resources, and more.

PRACTICE Your Best!

Jeff welcomes to the podcast Retired US Navy Captain and New York Times Bestselling author, David Marquet.

David was a nuclear submarine commander who came up through an organizational structure that rewarded knowing the right answer and following orders. In many organizational structures, people are often biased towards doing what they’re told, even if they sense it may not be the best course of action. 

The best way to get out of this organizational mindset is for the leader to not make any decisions, but instead let their team come to them with solutions. 

What steps does David suggest we do to improve organizational design?

• Step 1 - Invite dissenting opinions. Even after a decision has been made, ask your team if it was the right call and how things could have been handled differently.
• Step 2 - Stop requiring permission. Instead have team members actively verbalize actions before they take them. This allows the leader to stop any actions, while empowering team members to take ownership of their actions.
• Step 3 - Lean back and let your team come to you. This will make your team feel more valued and lead to better decision making and organizational design. 

Most importantly, practice organizational leadership!

Guest: David Marquet

Wall Street Journal Best-Selling author David Marquet was assigned to command the nuclear-powered submarine USS Santa Fe, then ranked last in retention and operational standing. He “turned the ship around” by treating the crew as leaders, not followers, and giving control, not taking control. This revolutionary approach not only took the Santa Fe from “worst to first” in the rankings, but also created more subsequent leaders than any other submarine. Captain Marquet is the author of Turn the Ship Around! A True Story of Turning Followers Into Leaders. Fortune magazine named it the #1 must-read business book of the year, and USA Today listed it as one of the top 12 business books of all time. Next came the newly acclaimed book, Leadership is Language. It is time to ditch the Industrial Age playbooks and learn that choosing the right words can improve team decision-making and execution. Leadership is

Language is featured in The Wall Street Journal’s Top 10 Best-Selling Business Book List, and was named the Book of the Month for the Financial Times. David Marquet is here today to deliver the powerful message that in highly effective organizations, leadership is not for the select few at the top. 

SurgeonMasters is a physician peer community dedicated to improving the personal and professional well-being of physicians.

Join your colleagues online at SurgeonMasters.com for events, resources, and more.

PRACTICE Your Best!

Jeff welcomes to the podcast orthopaedic trauma surgeon and founder of SIGN Fracture Care, Dr. Lewis G. Zirkle.

SIGN is a humanitarian organization that builds sustainable orthopaedic capacity in developing countries by providing relevant education to surgeons, then manufacturing and donating the instruments and implants needed to treat fractures. Dr. Zirkle was inspired to create SIGN after treating Vietnamese soldiers during the Vietnam war.

Throughout his long career in medicine, Dr. Zirkle has learned the value in looking at things through new eyes. Often in orthopaedics, we just do what has been done before. But looking at things with new eyes is important because you can develop instruments and find new discoveries because you’re not hampered by the established way.
Dr. Zirkle consulting with SIGN Surgeons.

What steps does Lew suggest we do to look at situations through new eyes?

• Step 1 – Don’t just accept that the established method is the only way to do things.
• Step 2 – Seek out different perspectives.
• Step 3 – Try new things and see if there is a better way to approach a particular process.

Most importantly, PRACTICE  looking at your situation through new eyes!

Guest: Lewis G. Zirkle, MD, President and Founder, SIGN Fracture Care International

Dr. Zirkle founded SIGN in order to bring healing to the injured poor in developing countries. Today, he gives mentorship to SIGN Surgeons at each hospital, reviews patient cases, and inspires new, innovative design ideas. 

SurgeonMasters is a physician peer community dedicated to improving the personal and professional well-being of physicians.

Join your colleagues online at SurgeonMasters.com for events, resources, and more.

PRACTICE Your Best!

Pump the brakes on your week and take 10 minutes to make your life as a surgeon just a little better… Jeff welcomes to the podcast SurgeonMasters collaborator and physician coach, Dr. Errin Weisman. Burnout is a common topic in the medical community. It’s been a topic of discussion for so long that some physicians […]

SurgeonMasters is a physician peer community dedicated to improving the personal and professional well-being of physicians.

Join your colleagues online at SurgeonMasters.com for events, resources, and more.

PRACTICE Your Best!

SurgeonMasters is a physician peer community dedicated to improving the personal and professional well-being of physicians.

Join your colleagues online at SurgeonMasters.com for events, resources, and more.

PRACTICE Your Best!

SurgeonMasters is a physician peer community dedicated to improving the personal and professional well-being of physicians.

Join your colleagues online at SurgeonMasters.com for events, resources, and more.

PRACTICE Your Best!

SurgeonMasters is a physician peer community dedicated to improving the personal and professional well-being of physicians.

Join your colleagues online at SurgeonMasters.com for events, resources, and more.

PRACTICE Your Best!

SurgeonMasters is a physician peer community dedicated to improving the personal and professional well-being of physicians.

Join your colleagues online at SurgeonMasters.com for events, resources, and more.

PRACTICE Your Best!

SurgeonMasters is a physician peer community dedicated to improving the personal and professional well-being of physicians.

Join your colleagues online at SurgeonMasters.com for events, resources, and more.

PRACTICE Your Best!