National Getaways for the Weary Trauma Surgeon; Part 1: Kish Island

Copyright © 2014, Kowsar Corp.; Published by Kowsar. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/) which permits copy and redistribute the material just in noncommercial usages, provided the original work is properly cited. Operation after operation, day after day, without leave or proper rest, creates a buildup of fatigue and stress. The trauma surgeon, overloaded with professional responsibilities and moral commitments, unconsciously neglects the physical and mental consequences of this daily routine. A buildup of stress is detrimental to one's health and impairs both cognitive function and manual dexterity. It is therefore not surprising that surgeons practicing in stressful medical professions aged 45 years and over have suicidal rates 1.5 to 3 times that of the general population (1). In a study conducted in 2011, which assessed 8000 surgeons, 501 reported suicidal ideation (2). These surgeons were over-worked and “stressed-out”. Surgeons, especially those in suboptimal physical shape, become fatigued more easily. Fatigue affects a surgeon's mentality, psyche and self-confidence, which impairs surgical judgment, and thus limits the ability to work efficiently (3). It is therefore imperative that surgeons periodically take leave to “get away from it all”, release tension and rest-up. In this issue we present part one of a series of editorials wherein we introduce national attractions and resort destinations for relaxation and recuperation of the weary, over-worked trauma surgeon.