Down To The Bone

This week we welcome Dr Chris Jurkans to talk about one of the most important — and least appreciated — roles in the operating theatre: the surgical assistant. What actually makes a good assistant? What separates a useful assistant from a completely useless one? And what is it really like standing on the other side of the operating table? Chris takes us behind the drapes to discuss the good, the bad and the occasionally brutal realities of assisting, including the stories and personalities he’s witnessed along the way. As always, As told with our special blend of the truth, exaggeration and a large smothering of hilarious stories that have got us here.. The Useful Jurk — because every surgeon needs someone useful.

Dr Simon Smith and Dr Harry Stock join us for a chat about life as orthopaedic surgeons in the South West of Western Australia. We get into what it’s really like working in the bush, the challenges and rewards of practising away from the big city, and how they’ve developed an impressive short-stay arthroplasty unit. We also talk unicompartmental knee replacements, why they’ve built such a great following for the procedure, and what makes their approach work. As always, As told with our special blend of the truth, exaggeration and a large smothering of hilarious stories that have got us here..

Dr Ed Baddour joins us to get stuck into all things cervical spine — from central stenosis and disc protrusions to the difficult decisions that come with treating patients with neck pathology We discuss the difficulties of personal injury including his Dicky Elbow and the pain of helping manage a spinal trauma service that services the largest isolated land mass in the world. As always told with our special blend of truth, exaggeration and a large smothering of hilarious stories that have got us here. With thanks to Hollywood Private Hospital for bringing you this episode.

Dr Taro Okamoto joins us to talk the increasingly interesting world of superior capsular reconstruction and what we're actually trying to achieve when the shoulder has given up on us. This episode isn't just about shoulders. We get into the much harder question of how you survive a career in surgery without letting it take over your entire life. We talk work-life balance, managing stress, switching off, and the highly sophisticated or maybe fun techniques we use to unwind after a day at work. As always, told with our special blend of the truth, exaggeration and a large smothering of hilarious stories that have got us here. With thanks to Hollywood Private Hospital for bringing you this episode.

Dr Daniel Marshall joins the boys to get Down to the Bone about one of orthopaedics’ oldest arguments — cement. We dive into PMMA in total hip replacement, why it has stood the test of time, and whether something that has been around for decades might still be one of the best tricks in the orthopaedic toolbox. But things get a little more personal when the surgeon becomes the patient. What happens when you’re the one lying on the operating table, waiting for someone else to do the cutting? We discuss how having surgery changes your perspective on being a surgeon, the realities of recovery, and why suddenly being on the other side of the drapes gives you a very different appreciation of the job. As always told with our special blend of truth, exaggeration and a large smothering of hilarious stories that have got us here. With thanks to Hollywood Private Hospital for bringing you this episode.