Are you born a surgeon?
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in a way, yes. talent can't be taught. much like the michael jordan's, tiger woods', wayne gretzky's of the sporting world, there are surgeons who have "it". hard to explain, but you realize it when you scrub in with them. no wasted motions, already a few steps ahead of everyone else like a chess grandmaster, calmly and cooly correct any problems that may surface. as they say you can teach almost anybody to operate, but you can't teach them to get to this level no matter how much they work at it. just like how very few people will ever reach the level of jordan, woods, gretzky etc no matter how hard they try.
With the exception of very rare individuals, most of the "talent" is gained through sheer practice. Some of us have seen residents who seem to be skilled and pick up on technique with very little training and practice. These are the Michael Jordans of surgery and they are just as rare as finding an MJ on a random basketball court in your home town. Unlike B-Ball, it may very well be possible for an average surgeon to attain that level of skill.
The VAST majority of surgeons simply learn how to operate, how to maximize their effectiveness and have no more skilled "hands of a surgeon" than any one else with the same training. The aphorism "you can teach a monkey to operate" is not that far fetched.
The VAST majority of surgeons simply learn how to operate, how to maximize their effectiveness and have no more skilled "hands of a surgeon" than any one else with the same training. The aphorism "you can teach a monkey to operate" is not that far fetched.
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This conversation and it's references reminds me of an excellent article from The New Yorker magazine from a number of years ago:
I highly recommend everyone to read this particular piece of journalism.
It is titled:
The Physical Genius
What do Wayne Gretsky, Yo-Yo Ma, and a brain surgeon named Charlie Wilson have in common?
http://www.newyorker.com/archive/1999/08/02/1999_08_02_057_TNY_LIBRY_000018760?currentPage=1
I highly recommend everyone to read this particular piece of journalism.
It is titled:
The Physical Genius
What do Wayne Gretsky, Yo-Yo Ma, and a brain surgeon named Charlie Wilson have in common?
http://www.newyorker.com/archive/1999/08/02/1999_08_02_057_TNY_LIBRY_000018760?currentPage=1
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I cut my own way of the womb wielding a scalpel, dunno about the rest of you.
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Hey, how did you get a hold of my baby picture?! Who are you?!I came out of the womb wielding a scalpel, dunno about the rest of you.
I came out of the womb wielding a scalpel, dunno about the rest of you.
I'm sure your mother loved that . . .
What other procedures had your mother had done before? Retained surgical tools is a serious problem!I cut my own way of the womb wielding a scalpel, dunno about the rest of you.