Auteur: Uttam Shiralkar

Dr Uttam Shiralkar, FRCS, MRCPsych, is a surgical performance coach based in the UK. Uttam worked as a surgeon for 15 years in the UK, India, and the US before moving to psychiatry. This transition was the result of the medical problems he faced after a serious car accident. While working in psychiatry, it became clear to him the profound impact that a surgeon »s psychology has on performance and surgical outcomes. This revelation inspired him to bring psychological research into surgical practice and training.His first book, « Smart Surgeons, Sharp Decisions » was an initial step in bringing psychology and surgery together. In his second book, « Cognitive Simulation », Uttam wrote about the importance of cognitive factors and how surgeons can use them to improve operative skills. His third book, « Surgeon, Heal Thyself » focused on stress management. Uttam »s newest book, « Surgical Metacognition: Smarter Decision-making for Surgeons », focuses on the key tool that underlies surgical expertise – metacognition, i.e., « thinking about thinking. » Understanding metacognition and how to develop and teach it is an important step in improving a surgeon »s self-awareness, astute thinking, and clinical decision-making. By taking heed of psychological studies discussed in the book – which have already been successfully taken on board by professions such as business, military, and aviation – surgery as a profession and surgeons as individuals can progress to higher levels of expertise.For more than a decade Uttam has helped many surgeons at various levels of their careers on a range of issues, providing mentorship, conducting research, speaking at meetings, and running workshops.