A vital and valid question that concerns many surgeons: how to make surgery safer? Is it by tightening the rules and imposing stricter protocols or by empowering surgeons to enable them to make safer and better decisions? This is the book for those who would choose the second option. Have you ever thought about what separates smart surgeons from the rest? Why do some surgeons make errors despite having experience and knowledge? There is only one answer to both questions – it is their decision-making. Decision-making is an art and is at the heart of surgery. It differentiates between excellent and poor surgical performance. Although a vital part of professional activity, surgeons are not generally aware of how to optimize surgical decisions. Making a good decision is a skill that needs to be developed. This book reveals how surgeons can sharpen these skills. Presented here are the findings from decision science that surgeons, irrespective of specialty or seniority, can apply to everyday practice. Surgeons and pilots have many things in common. The field of aviation has improved passengers’ safety over the years and some of the ideas used in the aviation industry can be translated to surgery to achieve better outcomes. Throughout your career you are required to adapt new strategies; ideas taken from this book will speed up the learning curve for making better decisions. It offers answers on the science of decision-making which experienced surgeons may find difficult to explain. Equally, it answers the questions that trainees may find difficult to ask on how to make the best decisions. You are expected to be cognizant of the knowledge behind making decisions. Nonetheless, no one tells you how to access this information easily. This book is the key to that vital information.About the AuthorUttam Shiralkar qualified and worked as a surgeon for 15 years in the USA, UK and India before he decided to enter the field of psychological medicine. His new-found interest in the budding field of psycho-oncology and the medical problems he faced after a car accident, were among the few reasons behind this move. While pursuing a career in psycho-oncology, it struck him strongly, how much of an impact a surgeon’s psychology has on his/her clinical outcome. When he started sharing new research findings on this subject with surgical colleagues, they expressed a strong desire to learn more about it. What started as an informal chat with surgical colleagues became a day-long course ‘Ergonomics for surgeons’. Currently, in addition to fulfilling his commitment as a consultant in the NHS, Uttam, on an informal level, is actively involved in mentoring surgeons at various levels of their careers.