Kaitlyn Crow

Mr. Ratliff
ISM-1
16 October 2019
Trauma Surgery
Research Assessment #7

Siebler, Justin. “Life as an Orthopaedic Trauma Surgeon.” ​Nebraska Medicine​, Nebraska

Medicine, 6 Aug. 2019, https://www.nebraskamed.com/trauma/life-as-an-orthopaedic-
Trauma-surgeon.

Since my official topic for this year is now pediatric orthopedic trauma surgery, I have
been conducting more research on orthopedic surgery specifically. I chose this over general
trauma surgery because the research I have done indicates that a lot of a trauma surgeon’s work
is doing non-traumatic surgery for their specialty. After comparing non-traumatic orthopedic
cases like spinal repairs to those of general surgery, I determined that I am more interested in
orthopedics. In addition, major trauma cases will require both types of trauma surgeons if not
more, so I will be able to observe both types during trauma rotations. However, I would like to
observe some non-traumatic surgeries with my mentor in order to better understand the specialty
of orthopedics.
For this research assessment, I used an article written by Dr. Justin Siebler, an orthopedic
trauma surgeon. In the article, he outlines his life as a surgeon and his responsibilities.
Dr. Siebler’s lifestyle seems typical to what I have researched for trauma surgeons, with a
lot of time being spent in the hospital and being on call a few times a month. He was very honest
about the fact that his long hours can affect his home life, but he is still able to have a loving
family. This seems consistent with what I have researched, and I accept that the grueling
schedule is simply part of this field. However, it is inspiring to see so many adults who appear to
be able to manage both their work as surgeons and their families.
What I found unique about Dr. Siebler’s article was his emphasis on the recovery process
for patients. I suppose that I had always assumed that trauma surgeons either lose their patients
or heal them and send them off to regular physicians to follow up with. However, Dr. Siebler
discussed the relationship that trauma surgeons maintain with patients as they recover, and I did
not previously know that trauma surgeons follow up with their patients often. I enjoyed learning
that this is part of the work of some trauma surgeons, since I would like to be able to form
relationships with some recurring patients. Dr. Siebler described this process as meeting
“patients in a bit of an opposite way,” seeing them first in the context of their injuries and then
getting to know them as people. I believe that I would really enjoy this process as a trauma
surgeon, since getting to form relationships with people as you help fix them over time sounds
very rewarding.
Another aspect of Dr. Siebler’s article that I found interesting was his emphasis on
educating others. A large part of his schedule is taken up by helping residents in the morning and
meeting with other medical workers like nurses and therapists throughout the day. While this
aspect of his life is going to be found more in teaching hospitals than those that do not accept
residents, if teaching is an important part of a trauma surgeon’s job then I look forward to it. I
love tutoring my peers because I enjoy watching them grow, and I would love the opportunity to
have similar experiences as an adult.