This recent New Year’s Eve, I found myself in the position of being on the other side of our profession. In the early hours of New Year’s Day, I was awakened by a call: My aunt had sustained a head injury after being struck by a car.
My early conversations with the on-call neurosurgeon, over the telephone and then in person, made me marvel at what we do daily. To be able to speak the neurosurgical language with a previously unknown colleague about a loved one, to have confidence in his assessment and recommendations provided me with security and filled me with hope that my aunt was going to recover.
This is the essence of what all neurosurgeons do — many times we must deliver news about a potentially life-altering condition to a complete stranger. This news must be delivered calmly and empathetically. My initial (virtual) interaction with the neurosurgeon convinced me that his plan was reasonable; speaking with him in person only solidified the confidence that I had in his ability to navigate the situation at hand. For this, I cannot adequately express my gratitude not only to him but also to the larger community of undergraduate and graduate medical educators that played a role in his education.
Neurosurgeons advocate for their patients, patients’ families, colleagues and others regularly on local, national and international stages; this is the theme of the upcoming annual AANS meeting. Beginning in April, the online AANS Neurosurgeon will feature contributions from our colleagues addressing the many ways in which we pursue advocacy for ourselves and those whom we take care of. In the coming months, we will offer pieces on advocacy for patients with neurosurgical conditions such as epilepsy, Parkinson’s disease and hydrocephalus. In addition, we will hear from colleagues who advocate for our specialty with lawmakers and policy makers. From the micro- to the macro- level, it takes the efforts and talents of many to uphold the tradition and chart the future course of the profession.
