The year was 1881 and a young woman was dying from the postpartum hemorrhage. The young, 29 years old surgeon was contacted and after deliberations he…
A Way to Gain Friends
A year or so before planning retirement and not being completely sure to stay in California or to go to North Carolina, I attended a vascular…
I am back!
It’s been close to six months since my last post. It was not a time of inactivity, just the opposite. I was working on my first…
The Best Way to Lose Weight
I was coming down in the elevator after the Duke vascular conference had finished. Halfway down, the car stopped and two men in blue scrubs entered….
Retirement Is a Perfect Time for More Education
Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication Leonardo da Vinci Friday morning vascular department conferences are special for me. For several reasons. Firstly, it’s the time. The conference…
What Poetry Can Do to You
I am not confused, I am just well mixed Robert Frost I was waiting in front of the elevator after Duke’s vascular conference has ended. I…
Learning how to Like an Opera Takes Time
An opera begins long before the curtain goes up and ends long after it has come down. Maria Callas The human voice is the most beautiful…
To Be Free, You Have to Be Able to Defend Yourself.
In two weeks it will be 70 years. Two, may be three generations ago. How many people still remember it? How many of them, who saw…
Being Headstrong Helps to Succeed as a Cardiac Surgeon
Lawyer: Dr Cooley, do you consider yourself the best surgeon in the world? Dr Cooley: Yes, I do. Lawyer: Don’t you think it is rather immodest?…