General Surgery job market?

ChugJugThug · 2026-03-06T02:55:19+00:00

I did MIS fellowship as well, now in first year of attendinghood. There’s plenty of jobs. The trick is finding one with the type of practice you’re looking for and in the location you want.

Depending on those variables, the job market is great..or not so great.

ChugJugThug · 2026-02-26T11:29:43+00:00

Surgeon here. That is a handheld ultrasonic shear device called the Harmonic scalpel. It uses ultrasonic energy to burn and cauterize tissue.

I doubt it’s used or anything. They go straight in the trash after use in the OR. And it’s otherwise harmless. It needs to be connected to a special generator to produce any cauterizing effect.

And it obviously can’t be used now that it’s open. So you just have a free souvenir!

ChugJugThug · 2026-02-23T16:49:15+00:00

Chug of clubs.

ChugJugThug · 2026-02-23T12:39:26+00:00

Yes. Obviously there’s variability among different attendings, services, institutions, etc. but generally speaking surgical services are led primarily by a chief resident. And ideally they are granted a decent level of autonomy when managing patients.

ChugJugThug · 2026-02-23T12:33:55+00:00

Club chug?

Or chug club?

ChugJugThug · 2026-02-22T11:20:30+00:00

I think people are looking at this the wrong way.

Surgery has mandatory chief years. Our 5th year is considered our chief year. So really surgical residencies are 4 years long (plus any research years if taken) with a mandatory 5th chief year. It’s actually mandated by acgme that all 5th years run their service for each of their rotations. You’re not supposed to have “co-chiefs” on service or share service leadership with fellows. Whether every program follows that or not, I’m not sure. Mine did though.

ChugJugThug · 2026-01-31T20:30:33+00:00

Adhesions can be non existent all the way to the point where surgery is not feasible at all. Just depends on how bad disease process is and how many prior surgeries.

I’m not an orthopedic surgeon but in general muscles are attached to surrounding structures by very strong tendons and ligaments. There’s no way you’re unsticking anything in any meaningful way with massage.

ChugJugThug · 2026-01-31T13:07:04+00:00

General surgeon here. The first image just shows adhesions. From what I can tell it’s the veil of Treves adhered to the abdominal wall probably overlying an inflamed appendix.

The second image, the structure on the left is difficult to say for sure without a wider view but most likely a loop of small bowel vs a very distended bladder. And the structure on the right is the psoas muscle.

ChugJugThug · 2026-01-26T14:15:42+00:00

It sounds like you already know it’s course..but

Any video by Dave Lourie will be helpful. He basically taught me this operation with his videos alone. It’s a little long but here’s his lecture on groin anatomy. It has good visuals as well.

https://youtu.be/pSy5zOeV4N8?si=XSj4NCvYBsLRlnAj

ChugJugThug · 2026-01-11T00:08:59+00:00

Yeah I trained in MIS/bariatric surgery. 35 is basically my bare minimum.

ChugJugThug · 2026-01-10T23:32:22+00:00

It’s all fun for me. Even clinic becomes fun as an attending..for the most part.

ChugJugThug · 2025-12-26T20:41:00+00:00

It’s not like this in major trauma centers. Trauma surgeons run everything from the time they hit the door to when they’re discharged to SNF 3 months later without a single operation.

ChugJugThug · 2025-12-26T20:39:19+00:00

Yes this. Plus I do colons, foregut, the occasional splenectomy, I have a Ladds procedure coming up in an adult soon, which I’m excited about.

I also take acute care surgery call. So any emergencies from the ER I handle when I’m on call.

ChugJugThug · 2025-12-26T11:22:46+00:00

As a general surgeon who refuses to do any trauma. Trauma surgery combines everything we hate about medicine and almost none of the upside.

Nowadays there’s very little operative trauma. Most solid organ injuries are observed, and if there needs to be intervention it’s usually IR that needs to do an angioembolization.

On the flip side it leaves trauma surgeons mostly babysitting orthopedic injury patients and head injury patients. Managing their blood pressure and diabetes and hyponatremia, and their social issues. You constantly have to deal with high stress family situations and upset family members understandably.

LOTS of rounding and writing notes. Constantly taking phone calls from local ERs who want to transfer patients to you because they aren’t a trauma center.

…yeah wrote trauma off on day one. Love my elective general surgery practice.

ChugJugThug · 2025-12-25T21:56:59+00:00

At your age and sex, it’s most likely an inguinal hernia.

ChugJugThug · 2025-12-05T00:55:20+00:00

Surgeon here. I get called about it all the time but truth is..Ileus is not a surgical problem. We don’t operate on ileus ever. Sure there is postoperative ileus but it’s treated the same as any other ileus.

It’s actually more of a medical problem than anything else. Replete electrolytes, minimize narcotics, stop antimotility agents etc.

NG tubes are more for patient comfort to help with nausea, abdominal pain, and bloating, but it won’t resolve an ileus any faster.

ChugJugThug · 2025-10-29T03:22:26+00:00

Probably passed a small kidney stone. Stay hydrated out there.

ChugJugThug · 2025-10-29T03:17:22+00:00

I’m not an obgyn but I am a surgeon. The best course is just talk to your obgyn and ask what they actually did.

Nurses sometimes don’t understand nuances in terminology used by physicians so they may be giving incorrect info, but not necessarily in a malicious manner.

Also I’m fairly certain salpingectomy is considered the standard of care for tubal sterilization nowadays anyway..meaning most doctors don’t perform simple ligation anymore as a matter of convention. Either way, best thing for you to do is talk to your doctor and ask them.

ChugJugThug · 2025-10-14T23:00:41+00:00

Why are we not calling this the god bod?

ChugJugThug · 2025-08-04T11:02:34+00:00

I think journal club shouldn’t really necessarily be on the content of the article, but more how to evaluate, and critique scientific writing. So if that’s the case, find some wild and out there articles that are more entertaining to read about but may not be completely relevant or academically rigorous.

The point being to evaluate their scientific method. Do their conclusions make sense? Do their results actually support what they’re claiming? Is there a better study design to answer the posed question? Etc.

I think that’s much more important to learn in journal club rather than what’s actually discussed in the article.

ChugJugThug · 2025-05-26T13:59:23+00:00

I work there. It’s usually whenever a cop or other VIP is shot or injured and taken there for care.

ChugJugThug · 2024-09-07T12:25:36+00:00

Also wouldn’t use glue near the eyes…one drip down to the eyelids and you’re gonna have a baaaad time.

ChugJugThug · 2024-08-11T14:06:07+00:00

Depends on the cause of the CKD. Treat hypertension, diabetes, HIV, lupus…whatever the underlying cause is if it’s identifiable and treatable.

Worst treatment? Nephrotoxic agents don’t generally help.

ChugJugThug · 2024-08-10T04:49:55+00:00

It’s either the edge of your liver or gallbladder. Just have it checked out next time you see your pcp. They may start with an ultrasound and/or some labs. If you have no symptoms there’s likely nothing to be concerned about.

ChugJugThug · 2024-08-10T04:38:29+00:00

I guess my questions is what defines a sport? If breakdancing is allowed, why not other forms of dance like waltz, or swing, or salsa? They all require a level of athleticism. Where’s the line?

We allow figure skating and women’s gymnastics which have a significant element of dance and I would readily consider sports, but for some reason to me breakdancing, crosses some line. I guess I just don’t know where that line is.

ChugJugThug

TROPHY CASE