The document discusses the education and career path of neurosurgeons. It describes how neurosurgeons must complete 4 years of medical school after obtaining a bachelor's degree, then undergo a 3-8 year residency training program due to the complexity of neurosurgery. Neurosurgeons treat various brain and spine conditions through specialized operations. The career requires strong problem-solving, communication, and stamina skills given the delicate nature of neurosurgery. However, the profession also carries risks of malpractice suits if surgeons fail to properly communicate risks to patients.

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Help! Somebody please call 911! There is a young adult having an epileptic seizure.
Once he is in the hospital and all types of test have been done, he will either see a neurologist or
neurosurgeon depending on how bad the problem is. There had been cases where the hospital
does everything they can in order to keep a patient alive, including surgeries and treatments, but
their health insurance end up only covering part of the bill. Do you have an idea of how much
education a neurosurgeon has to go through after high school? Due to the fact that they have to
learn how to treat disorders but the profession also has its cons and pros. It is a lengthy career but
it is worth struggling for.
Have you ever been scared or worried when you found out that you were going to have
surgery? The reason you were scared or worried was because you weren’t so sure about the
surgeon succeeding or failing in the operation. Students volunteer at local hospitals or clinics to
gain practical experience in the health professions. Once you have a bachelor’s degree you can
apply to a medical school even though the acceptance is very competitive. Students spend most
of the first 2 years of medical school in laboratories and classrooms, taking courses such as
anatomy, biochemistry, physiology, psychology, microbiology, pathology, medical ethics, and
classes about the laws governing the medicine. They also learn to take medical histories,
examine patients, and diagnose illnesses. During their last 2 years, students work with patients
under the supervision of experienced physicians in hospitals and clinics, learning acute, chronic,
preventative, and rehabilitative care. Through rotations in internal medicine, family practice,
obstetrics and gynecology, pediatrics, psychiatry, and surgery, they gain experience in the
diagnosis and treatment of illness. Finally then they go into a specialized residency training that
ranges from three to eight years. The residency training is long due to the complexity of the
nervous system and advance techniques used in neurosurgical operations (neurosurgeon).

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The following are only a few things that neurosurgeons will treat: head and spine trauma,
cerebrovascular disorders, aneurysms of the brain, clogged arteries in the neck that can lead to
strokes, chronic low back pain, birth defects, brain and spinal tumors, abnormalities in the
nerves, carpal tunnel syndrome, cervical spine disorders, head injuries, herniated diseases,
lumbar stenosis, spina bifida and epilepsy. Epilepsy becomes more common as people age. T can
be treated but not cured even though some forms are confines to particular stages of childhood.
Before a seizure occurs, for some people there’s a weird sensation that may affect any of the 5
senses called Aura. The middle stage is called Ictal. Ictal can include an intensely pleasant or
unpleasant taste in the mouth, visual hallucinations, inability to speak, or jerking and spasms of
the muscles throughout the body. The final stage of an epileptic seizure is Post-Ictal. In this stage
the types of symptoms will be indicative of the area of the brain that was most affected. Surgery
is only performed in difficult cases and as part of treatment.(Neurosurgeon).

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There are many great neurosurgeons as well as much that malpractice. The most worldwide
known neurosurgeon is Benjamin Carson. In 1987, Carson made medical history by being the
first surgeon in the world to successfully separate Siamese twins(the Binder twins) conjoined at
the back of the head(Craniopagus twins). Dr. Carson along with his seventy member surgical
team worked for twenty-two hours to successfully separate the twins. Other surgical innovations
include the first intrauterine procedure to relieve pressure on the brain of a hydrocephalic fetal
twin, and a hemispherectomy, in which a young girl suffering from uncontrollable seizures had
once half of her brain removed. Neurosurgeons can perform surgery on the skull not just on the
brain. Gabrielle Giffords received a bullet wound on her skull. In order to surgically repair the
damaged part of the skull they had to reopen the incision they made in the first place and expose
the skull and find the edges. The implant is custom made so it will fit like a puzzle piece. The
original piece was too damaged to be used again. She received a plastic surgery implant. The
risks of the surgery are infection of the implant because it’s foreign object or bleeding. (Giffords)
Dr. Steven B. Schwartz from South Dakota was sued for malpractice on August 21, 2008.
Schwartz operated on Diane Mousseau in June and November 2001. Ms. Mousseau later alleged
he failed to treats some areas of her spine that should have been treated and that he weakened the
other areas, resulting in permanent back pain and leg weakness.
Pat Deese is a nurse in the Emergency Room at Johnston Memorial Hospital. Education
after High School was very difficult because you will never stop learning, the professors are
strict and expect for their students to be on task. You cannot wake up one day and decide not to
learn because when you do that you are going to get kicked out of the class for good. The more
you know, the less likely you are to hurt someone. An average day according to her is being busy
and helping out patients but she will run into rude and disrespectful patients. When treating

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patients, you have to diagnose them but you never know who or what caused it. There will be
times where your patient is someone you know. Ms. Deese does not have a brake till there is
someone to replace her because it is busy and it would get over crowded if she got off and there
wasn’t someone to see the patients. Every medical physician has to have some sort of
malpractice insurance. Malpractice insurance is expensive and the price varies depending on
what you do. There will not be malpractice insurances that are cheaper than two-thousand dollars
per month. It’s important to have it because if something goes wrong the insurance will cover the
damage and pay the bill. For example, there was a radiologist that did not pick up that the patient
had a broken neck. He was sued and the patient was given about four-hundred thousand dollars
and all the bills where paid. You can be sued for many things, not just because you did
something wrong but also for doing good. Pat said, “Especially Neurosurgeons have to talk or
should I say, it’s mandatory to talk to their patient and their family, notify them what the possible
side effects could be after surgery. If he was to wake up and recover but not be able to do
nothing for himself just because the physician did not notify them of the side effects, the
physician will lose his or her license for ever. Surgery is very delicate and difficult to perform
because if you mess up, you are done for good. Before anyone is put into surgery the patient has
to be diagnosed, have consent from the patient and his or her family, affirmed that the insurance
will cover the bill of what will be performed on the patient. It is recommended that people do not
consume any type of liquids or anything for at least twenty-four hours before surgery. When you
go into the Medical field you are basically giving up your life and you make your job your main
priority”.
Dr. Carson once said, “Success is determined not by whether or not that you face
obstacles, but by your reaction to them. And if you look at these like obstacles as a containing

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fence, they become your excuse for failure. If you look at them like a hurdle, each one
strengthens you for the next.”
Neurosurgeons are usually helping people that enjoy finding solutions to problems,
dealing with people, direct work of others, and have mental and physical stamina. Ethics is a
strong point because they have to do what is right for the patient with the best interests in mind.
As well as excellent communications skills, get with people, and instill confidence (Ben).
Without well trained neurosurgeons, surgery will just be nothing more than the dissection
of the body. If malpractice continues to occur, than the patients will less likely have enthusiasm
for survival when their only option is surgery! Next time you are offered surgery as a treatment,
will you be afraid that he or she the surgeon will succeed or malpractice surgery on you? Not
only do they save lives but also extend the quality of life, as well as the chances of improving the
lives of the next generation.