We all know that the brain is one of our body’s essential organs. If you have any complications with your brain, your body may not be able to function correctly.
So it is essential to treat these problems like a brain tumor or nerve damage with an excellent neurosurgeon.
Has it ever crossed your mind what day-to-day life looks like for a neurosurgeon? We will take a look at that through this article by following a day in the life of Dr. Gurneet Singh Sawhney, a neurosurgeon in Thane.
What does a Regular Day Look Like for a Neurosurgeon?
A neurosurgeon performs various surgeries like brain tumor surgery, nerve damage surgery, and surgeries for movement disorders like Parkinson’s disease, epilepsy, etc. A typical day for a neurosurgeon can start as early as around 5.30 am.
The typical day of working is lengthy. It begins with a round of the ward and a check on any patients in the intensive care unit (ICU). A review meeting might be held every morning to address patients who came in the previous 24 hours and to go through all the imagings.
If the neurosurgeon has surgery that day, they would go to the operation theater, do pre-checks, meet other theater professionals, and discuss each patient who has surgery.
Surgeries can be short, taking 4-5 hours to complete, or they can take up to 12-15 hours to complete, says Dr. Gurneet Singh Sawhney. You must be physically fit to perform surgery because you must stand for long hours and work precisely.
A neurosurgeon needs to take utmost care while performing surgery because it is the human brain we are talking about, and your whole body depends on your brain to function correctly. There is always the fear of hurting other nerves while removing or performing a brain tumor surgery.
A neurosurgeon can perform multiple surgeries in a day. Their work shifts can be as long as 12 to 24 hours. The most intense surgeries can be really long and physically tiring.
The neurosurgeon signs paperwork between the surgeries and meets patients with potential surgeries, etc.
Another big part is handling the patient’s family. Talking to the family and seeing people in worry and pain daily takes a mental and emotional toll on you. It is vital for a neurosurgeon not to be affected by all these things and to hold their ground.
What Type of Surgeries does a Neurosurgeon Perform Daily?
There are numerous types of surgeries that a neurosurgeon performs daily. Neurosurgeon in Thane, Dr. Sawhney, shares some of his experiences as a neurosurgeon.
He says that a 65-year-old lady came to him once complaining of persistent headaches and visual disturbance. When the MRI was done, it was found that she had a non-cancerous tumor in her brain, which was the size of an apple.
The only treatment option is surgery. After a successful surgery, the patient made a quick recovery and was fit to send back to her everyday life again.
In another case, a two-year-and-seven-month-old child arrived from Mauritius in a drug-induced coma to Dr. Sawhney. According to her parents’ background, she was perfectly OK until about a year and a half ago, when they observed her hobbling and swaying to the right.
Dr. Sawhney, one of the best neurosurgeons in Thane, ordered a repeat MRI. It showed a large exophytic dorsal pontine lesion. He scheduled a VP shunt as an initial step after conveying the bad prognosis to the parents, completed on July 18, 2021.
They were able to remove the tumor effectively. Following the shunt, the patient demonstrated modest clinical improvement. As a result, she was scheduled for a craniotomy and microsurgical tumor removal on July 20, 2021.
The best reward for any surgeon is seeing their patients healthy and returning to their everyday life after surgery. According to Dr. Sawhney, being a neurologist and being able to treat people with life-altering diseases is hard. But the satisfaction you get after seeing your patent fit and fine is the greatest reward.
Emergency Cases
Though the surgeries are usually scheduled beforehand, emergency surgery for a patient with an aneurysm or a stroke might abruptly interrupt elective operations.
A neurosurgeon’s schedule is constantly changing to meet emergencies, and neurosurgeons are routinely called upon for consultations with other hospital departments.
To conclude, due to the demanding and intensive nature of the work, many neurosurgeons regard their profession as a vocation rather than a means of making a livelihood. People interested in how the brain works, comfortable in high-stress circumstances, and secure in their decision-making abilities are likely to be drawn to this profession.
