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Surgeons with Purpose

Surgeons with Purpose

By: Hippocratic Collective
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A podcast for surgeons who feel like they are languishing in a career that didn't turn out to be as fulfilling or as prestigious as they expected. Dr. Mel Thacker, an ENT surgeon and coach, takes you on a journey to help you understand why you are feeling dissatisfied, burnt out, and stuck. With this newfound insight, you'll be able to reframe how you see your experience, rediscover who you are underneath your surgeon identity, and create a life that aligns with your authentic self. Find more info about Surgeons with Purpose and other shows on the Hippocratic Collective at hippocratic-collective.com© 2025 Surgeons with Purpose Hygiene & Healthy Living Personal Development Personal Success Physical Illness & Disease Psychology Psychology & Mental Health
Episodes
  • #103 Right Place Right Time with Dr. Racheal Peterson

    #103 Right Place Right Time with Dr. Racheal Peterson
    Jun 22 2026

    Take the quiz "What Kind of Surgeon Are You Becoming?" here.

    Join Empowered Surgeons Group here.

    Dr. Racheal Peterson joins me to share her journey into neurosurgery, a path she set her sights on before medical school and ultimately made a reality. We talk about her first experiences in the operating room as a medical student and the sense of wonder that comes with being able to truly change a patient's life with surgery.

    Our conversation explores what made her residency genuinely formative rather than simply something to survive, the unique "bro nerd" culture of neurosurgery, and the common trap of believing the next milestone will finally make you feel like you've arrived. We also discuss how she discovered an unexpected creative outlet through social media, her experience becoming a mother during training and as a young attending, and how her aspirations, priorities, and communication style have evolved throughout her career.

    This is a thoughtful conversation about identity, ambition, growth, and what it means to build a life in surgery that continues to evolve alongside you.

    Follow Dr. Peterson on instagram here.
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    59 mins
  • #102 Becoming a Surgeon with Purpose with Dr. Cameron Roth

    #102 Becoming a Surgeon with Purpose with Dr. Cameron Roth
    Jun 15 2026

    What kind of surgeon are you becoming? Take the quiz here.

    Join us inside Empowered Surgeons Group here.

    Check out Behind the Sports Medicine Podcast here and follow them on instagram here.

    Dr. Cameron Roth is a fellowship-trained orthopedic doctor specializing in hand, wrist, and upper extremity surgery and co-host of the podcast, Behind the Sports Medicine Podcast.

    In this episode we talk about what it actually feels like to finish training and go out into the world as an attending for the first time when the buck stops with you.

    We talk about imposter syndrome and the real divide between how men and women experience the culture of surgery, particularly orthopedic surgeons.

    We touch on the fallacy of certainty. You train under one attending who tells you there is one right way to do things. Then you rotate to another attending who tells you the same thing about a completely different technique. Both are certain. Both are wrong about their certainty.

    We also get into the first complication after training, and how it hits differently than anything you experienced as a resident.

    We consider whether being a woman in surgery might be a superpower, or, perhaps, that surgery selects for badass women. The extra scrutiny, the bias, the being underestimated, done consciously, can produce antifragility. Not just toughness. The capacity to grow stronger under pressure. I think every surgeon, regardless of gender, needs to hear this reframe.

    We also cover what genuine availability to patients looks like versus the kind that breeds resentment, and what it means to show up for patients from service energy rather than fear.

    This one is for every surgeon who has ever stood at the scrub sink before a hard case and wondered why their career doesn't feel like they thought it should.
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    1 hr and 6 mins
  • #101 Finding Opportunities in Sham Peer Review with Dr. Tracey O'Connell

    #101 Finding Opportunities in Sham Peer Review with Dr. Tracey O'Connell
    Jun 8 2026
    Join us inside Empowered Surgeons Group here.Sham peer review can be one of the most devastating threats facing surgeons today. But it doesn’t have to.Physician, educator, and coach, Dr. Tracey O'Connell, pulls back the curtain on a reality most surgeons don't see coming until they're already inside it. This conversation is sobering. It is necessary. And it ends with a message of genuine hope: that the surgeon who protects herself, serves her patients, and diversifies her professional identity is also the surgeon who is hardest to destroy.What Is Peer Review, and What Is Sham Peer Review?Legitimate peer review is a quality assurance process initiated when a patient, fellow physician, or staff member reports that a physician failed to meet the standard of care or acted improperly. A hospital committee reviews the case, the physician may testify and present evidence, and a determination is made.Sham peer review is something else entirely. It is the weaponization of that same process for personal, competitive, or political reasons, not to protect patients, but to target a physician. It is used to intimidate, silence, retaliate, and in some cases, end careers.Sham peer review is defined as “the abuse of a medical peer review process to attack a doctor for personal or other non-medical reasons." Physicians most at risk are those employed by large hospital systems.How Often Does This Happen?The honest answer is that precise data is hard to come by, and that itself is part of the problem. Many cases are buried under non-disclosure agreements or never reported because physicians are too isolated, too afraid, or too ashamed to speak.What we do know- 56% of U.S. physicians surveyed by Medscape report higher concern that peer review could be misused to punish them for reasons unrelated to the case being reviewed.- At least 10% of peer review investigations are estimated to be sham peer reviews used to weaponize the process rather than ensure quality care.- 15% of physicians surveyed in a 2007 AMA investigation indicated awareness of peer review misuse or abuse.- Hospital disciplinary actions, including suspected sham peer reviews, average 2.5 per year per hospital, according to National Practitioner Data Bank (NPDB) records.- In Texas alone, 68% of adversely peer-reviewed physicians in 2004 were later adjudicated by the Texas Licensing Board, meaning the reviews were found to be without merit, yet their NPDB reports remain.The pattern is hard to see because it happens in the confidential, protected setting of hospital committees. But the incidence and severity are increasing.What You Must Know about the NPDB:The NPDB was originally created to prevent physicians who had committed dangerous acts from crossing state lines and practicing without consequence. A legitimate and necessary tool, in theory.In practice, it has become one of the most powerful weapons in a sham peer review.Key facts Dr. O'Connell wants every surgeon to understand:- Do not resign while a review is underway. Resignation during an active peer review or Performance Improvement Plan (PIP) can trigger an adverse report to the NPDB and, critically, waives your right to challenge the review. This is one of the most common and devastating mistakes physicians make.- The only person who can remove an NPDB report is the person or institution that created it. Once reported, removal requires cooperation from the very party that filed it.- An NPDB report does not have to end your career. This is important. While it can be weaponized as an indicator of incompetence, it is not an automatic career death sentence. Many physicians navigate NPDB reports and continue to practice successfully.- Get legal representation early. Do not wait. Find an attorney with specific experience in sham peer review and NPDB reporting requirements before the process accelerates.The Psychological Weight of This Reality:Dr. O'Connell is direct. This is depressing to know about. It is genuinely sad that the systems designed to protect patients are being turned against the physicians who serve them.The isolation is real. Physicians under review are often told not to discuss the matter with colleagues. This is a deliberate strategy, and it works. Physicians blame themselves. They question their competence. They feel shame. They feel alone.Dr. O'Connell's core message: a sham peer review is not a reflection of your worth as a physician or as a person. It is, in many cases, a reflection of institutional politics, competition, and the absence of adequate legal protections for doctors.We must be able to survive this psychologically and emotionally.Resources:Physician Just Equity (PJE)Founded by Dr. Pringl Miller, MD, FACS, PJE is a 501(c)3 organization of 50 physicians, all of whom have experienced workplace injustice and are dedicated to preserving justice in medicine. PJE offers free, confidential peer support teams for physicians navigating conflicts. They are also collecting data on...
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    1 hr and 12 mins
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