"What Women Do" by Kathryn Ko, MD

The production of this book was undertaken in an effort to celebrate the 20^th anniversary of the Women in Neurosurgery organization.  These memoirs/essays
and artwork carry startling insights. Individuals who
have experienced similar struggles will gain solace
from understanding that they are not alone.  All will
laugh and cry along with these heroic women who reached deep into themselves and created a
collection of heartfelt, insightful, inspired works of art.

As Dr. Shelley Chou used to say, to run this experiment yourself, go into a quiet operating room, throw a small temper tantrum (most of us have done that before), and watch the effectiveness of the team disintegrate because the staff is no longer focused on the care of the patient, they are focused on the care of the surgeon, which is not the proper goal for the team.  Anything that distracts from the proper focus is bad for the team and, more importantly, bad for the patient.

from Team-Building and Building a Reputation
Alexa I. Canady, MD

"Operating Hands" by   Denise E. Crute, MD

I have had many a low day when I have wanted to do anything but be a neurosurgeon (usually I choose park ranger).  However, if people really can have a calling for something, I guess neurosurgery was mine.  I feel like I am doing what I am supposed to be doing, and doing the best I can for myself, my husband, my family, and my patients.

from Babies and Brain Surgery...
What Could Possibly Go Wrong?
Barbara E. Lazio, MD

I get mistaken for the nurse, the physio, the tea lady. I have patients who get sent a letter for an appointment with my name on it, sit through an entire consultation with me, an explanation of the imaging, description of the procedure and risks, and are still surprised to discover that it will be me doing the surgery.

from Expecting Someone Taller
Gwynedd E. Pickett, MD, FRCSC

"Sailing Into Retirement by  Carole A. Miller, MD

from Portrait of Man with Head Injury
Susan Reid Hemley, MD

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Chapter 1: Hands of a Woman: Beginning
Deborah L. Benzil, MD and Karin M. Muraszko, MD
Prologue

Chapter 2: Hands of Experience: Bridges to the Future

Ann-Christine Duhaime, MD
Paths

Karin M. Muraszko, MD
It Matters

Alexa I. Canady, MD.
Team-Building and Building a Reputation

Ruth Kerr Jakoby, MD
Retrospective: 79-Year-Old Neurosurgeon, Mother, and Grandmother

Deborah L. Benzil, MD
You’re Not Alone Anymore

Edie E. Zusman, MD
Diving Into the Pool: Effecting Change Through Our Participation

Nancy E. Epstein, MD
Neurosurgery: A Congenital Defect

Gail L. Rosseau, MD
The Unexpected Benefits of a Neurosurgical Career

Roberta P. Glick, MD
1996 Thanksgiving From Hell…Almost!

Chapter 3: Young Hands: A New Generation

Barbara E. Lazio, MD
Babies and Brain Surgery…What Could Possibly Go Wrong?

Jenny J. Multani, MD
Out of the Mouths of Babes – From the Diary of a Neurosurgeon Mom

Aruna Ganju, MD
Shamika

Anonymous
A Silent Observation

Jamie S. Ullman, MD
Rite of Passage

Chapter 4: International Hands: A Global Perspective

Say Ayala-Soriano, LMS
Why Neurosurgery is a Sweet Job

Yoko Kato, MD
Toward a Better Future for Women Neurosurgeons and Their Patients

Gwynedd E. Pickett, MD
Expecting Someone Taller

María Loreto Yáñez, MD
My Experience at the Asenjo Institute

Farzana Tariq, MD
We Can Make a Difference

Samira Zabihyan, MD
An “Ugly Duckling” Story

Lucia Benvenuti, MD
The Seven Qualities Rule

Ena Isabel Miller Molina de Selman, MD
Neurosurgery in Honduras

Chapter 5: Changing Hands and Changing Times:

Carole A. Miller, MD
Sailing Into Retirement

Suzie C. Tindall, MD
Greetings From Retirement

Alexa I. Canady, MD
Mentors Matter

Chapter 6: Creative Hands: Our Special Beauty

Chris A. Philips
Fall Diva

Beverly Walters, MD
North Hatley Images: Late Winter

Denise E. Crute, MD
Cambridge Train
Rocket Man

Suzie C. Tindall, MD
Exquisite Woodworking

Isabelle M. Germano, MD
Neurosurgery: Love, Passion, Dedication

J. Nozipo Maraire, MD
Heal with Steel, or Ode to My Scalpel

Kathryn Ko, MD
Block Time
Surgeon Paints Saville

Russell W. Hardy Jr., MD
Dr. Rosseau

Susan Reid Hemley, MD
Grand Rounds, a poetry series

Daniella Gheorghe, MD
Ancestral Mammals

Alexandra R. Kunz, MD
From the play, "Thirteen is a Mystical Number"

Judy Huang, MD
Galapagos Adventures

Deborah L. Benzil, MD
9/11 Trilogy

Shelley D. Timmons, MD
Woman and Child
Russell with Pail
Ennui

Chapter 7: Hands of a Woman: Our Promising Future

Karin M. Muraszko, MD and Deborah L. Benzil, MD
In Closing