Month: June 2025
What Transition Taught Me About Gender, Power, and Medicine
By Jailyn Avila, MD, FP-AEMUS, RDMS One afternoon, when I was a young attending at a large academic center, I was paged to the trauma bay to receive a patient in traumatic shock. Our team of 10-15 multidisciplinary medical professionals assembled in the trauma room as the medics wheeled our patient in, solely focused on saving the patient's life. Immediately after the medics brought the patient into our trauma area, my senior resident asked for the patient's history, after which the medic paused and stated, “You have really pretty hair.” My senior resident then politely asked the medic to continue their report, ignoring the inappropriate and unprofessional comment. After stabilization and disposition, I attempted to locate the man who had been so inappropriate with my resident, but his team had already departed. I circled back with my resident, who acknowledged the experience and how inappropriate it was, but she informed...
Preserving Hobbies
by Olivia T. Zhou To me, the age-old adage of “you can’t pour from an empty cup” holds especially true today. Medicine is a deeply meaningful but often all-consuming career. The intensity of training, long hours, and emotional demands can easily displace relationships, hobbies, and interests that once brought joy and balance. Because of these challenges, maintaining a connection to a life outside of medicine is particularly essential. Hobbies can offer space for self-expression, stress relief, and identity beyond our professional roles as physicians. Most of us know that participating in creative or physical activities can improve well-being, build resilience, and reduce burnout, but we often struggle with consistency and upkeep. However, even a modest investment can provide noticeable benefits. Here are some strategies that have helped me preserve my hobbies throughout my training so far: Schedule dedicated time: Blocking off regular time for a hobby, just like scheduling other...
Beyond the Banners: The Quiet Cost of Pride
by Anthony Tannous, MD, FACS This is a special edition blog post presented in partnership with the Association of Out Surgeons and Allies in celebration of Pride Month. June bursts forth in a riot of color, a seemingly utopian vision of equality and dignity, often accompanied by a healthy dose of corporate branding. Around the Western world, joyful — and perhaps slightly inebriated — celebrants reclaim public spaces, belting pop anthems and radiating pure, unadulterated queer joy. This year, however, the glitter feels heavier, the music a little more poignant. The comfort and acceptance we’ve come to expect are under strategic, relentless attack. Bigotry has shed its hood and robe for tailored suits and eloquent speeches. It occupies podiums, commands microphones, and infiltrates mainstream podcasts. They begin, as always, with the most vulnerable: our trans siblings. But history, that unsparing teacher, reminds us that the target will inevitably widen to...
Stitch by Stitch
By Tala AbedalqaderI’ve always found a certain sense of purpose in using my hands. Whether it’s an embroidery thread sliding through fabric or suture material passing through layers of skin, I found that there’s a rhythm and purpose that drives me. Whether it’s art or surgery, my hands are driven by the same intention – to create and repair.Crocheting, embroidery, and sketching were creative outlets I picked up in medical school that gave me a sense of peace and the opportunity to relieve stress. As I grew more interested in surgery, I started to notice how these hobbies weren’t just therapeutic, but they were also shaping my skills in meaningful ways. The dexterity I harbored from manipulating threaded needles and hooks granted me with fine motor skills that I would use, first in simulation, then in the operating room. Similarly, sketching proved to be an excellent and highly useful skill...
To Come Out (Again) or Not? A Surgeon’s Reflections on Identity in the Workplace
This is a special edition blog post presented in partnership with the Association of Out Surgeons and Allies in celebration of Pride Month.By Dr. Kayleigh M. Herrick-Reynolds As I am speed-rounding to get to the OR on time, my patient catches a glimpse of my wedding ring and asks, “Is your husband a doctor too?” This question—a genuine interest in my life and a plea for the normalcy of casual conversation as I wake them at 6:00 a.m—is also just the first of many times that day I will have to choose how to answer.Surgical training requires intense focus, commitment, resilience, and sacrifice. For anyone who does not fit the stereotype of “surgeon” or who holds a non-traditional identity, the mental choreography of deciding how much of ourselves to share in the workplace adds a layer of stress to an already high-stakes job. Particularly as a trainee, the rigid hierarchy...
A Love Letter to PM Rounds
By Aparna Ragupathi*All names have been changed for patient and staff privacy It’s 4:12 PM when I leave the PACU. One of the chaplains in the hallway smiles at me, and I realize I’m still wearing my OR bonnet. I take it off and toss it in the trash can by the security desk. On my phone, I scroll past the class group chat notifications and Uber Eats deals to find what I’m looking for.A text message. “PM rounding on 5T,” one of the surgical floors at our hospital.I trade my phone for the folded patient list in my back pocket. The elevator beams me up to 5 Tower and I find my residents in front of room 6. The fishbones on Jamie’s list have numbers now, which feels like a full tank of gas. We meet Carter in room 6, Jeannine's brother. He brightens up when we tell him...
Visibility and Possibility
This is a special edition blog post presented in partnership with the Association of Out Surgeons and Allies in celebration of Pride Month. By: Aeryn Kangas-Dick MD I knew I was transgender since I was a child, but I never had the language to say what that meant. All I knew was what I saw on television— transgender people were often played for comic relief, or sometimes for shock value. Role models were few and very far between, and I had certainly never heard of a transgender surgeon. During my planned research year between my second and third years of surgical training, I was called to serve as an ICU resident during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in New York City. As many did after confronting the horrors of this experience, I realized I didn’t want to spend more time pretending to be something I wasn’t. However I was...
What Does it Mean to be an Advocate? Reflections from the ACS Leadership and Advocacy Summit 2025
By Shannon F.R. Small, MD, FACS The word “advocate” can mean a variety of things, especially within the medical field. Most commonly, patients are asked to designate their own advocate, someone to speak for them. Hospitals may employ dedicated advocates to aid patients in navigating the complex medical system. Medical staff may ask for representatives to serve as advocates towards hospital leadership. I consider myself an advocate for my patients, for the students and residents I mentor, and for my colleagues. Recently, I discovered a new dimension of advocacy when I attended my first American College of Surgeons’ Leadership and Advocacy Summit. This annual meeting brings together medical students, residents, and attending surgeons from across the country for sessions focused on leadership development and health policy. The Summit culminates in a visit to Capitol Hill, where each state delegation meets with congressional representatives to discuss key legislative priorities supported by...
Scalpels and Strings: Similarities between the Orchestra and the OR
By Dr. Sruti Cheruvu Some of the earliest lessons I learned that helped prepare me to be a surgeon came from the orchestra. I played violin and viola in my school and regional orchestras throughout high school. Some of my fondest memories are of working on Mozart, Tchaikovsky, and Shostakovich - learning my pieces inside and out through hours of practice. It was often grueling but deeply gratifying. I made friends from across sections, including fellow string players and wind and brass musicians. We would share parts and swap cues to see how our different parts fit together. I often leaned over to ask the concertmaster or the cellist sitting next to me if I could look at their score to understand how my part fit into the bigger picture. If our director gave a cue for the clarinets before our entrance, I would write that part into my music....
A Surgical Resident’s Journey to Authenticity
By Dr. Steven Xie This is a special edition blog post presented in partnership with the Association of Out Surgeons and Allies in celebration of Pride Month. Every member of the LGBTQ+ community has a unique story and journey in coming out. Often, coming out isn’t a single moment, but a continuous process of choosing to live authentically, sometimes in spaces that are not built or ready for it. Growing up at the intersection of being Asian American and gay, I internalized the idea that my identity was something to hide–something I should be ashamed of. There was a deep fear of disappointing my family, whose ideology likely stemmed from the cultural silence around queerness, and their fear of what being gay meant for my future. I immersed myself in academics, kept my head buried in books, hoping academic success would protect me from shame. I viewed excellence as a...