If you’ve ever spent your Monday morning commute daydreaming about starting afresh with your career, this feature is for you. Each Monday, our Money team speaks to someone from a different profession to discover what it’s really like. This week we chat to Dr Ismail Ughratdar, a neurosurgeon at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham…
The starting salary of a consultant neurosurgeon in the UK… is just under £100,000. It will take a further 20 years to reach around £140,000.
It is a privilege to work in this field, despite the relatively crap pay… for the amount of complexity and stress associated with the job.
Hands-on training takes around… 10 to 15 years, including operating theatre, clinics, experiencing MDTs (multidisciplinary teams), and so on. Emergency and elective operating.
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I work between… 60 and 70 hours a week, on average.
On operating day I arrive at… 7am. I see patients pre-op. I then start operating at around 8.30am and that can go through until 6.30pm. I do a post-op ward round as well to check on patients. Clinic MDT day, where experts from different disciplines combine to make decisions about patient care, typically starts at 8.30am until 5pm. Plus I review inpatients in-between.
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The most common reason for brain surgery is… brain tumours.
During surgery I’m thinking about… the next operative steps and potential hazards to avoid.
To switch off after work, I use… meditation. Spending time with family is the most important thing as well.
The biggest mistake I have ever made is… not forcing a young patient to stay in hospital against medical advice. He later died. Poor communication is the most common mistake in the industry.
There are a handful of brain tumour patients who have been told… that surgery is not possible and they have come to me for a second opinion. In the majority of these cases, I have gone on to undertake fairly complicated procedures, thankfully with good outcomes. These patients have been extremely grateful and I have found doing surgeries for them very rewarding. I’ve just come back from a three-week stint in Gaza. I removed shrapnel and bullets from the heads of children and teenagers.
To look after your brain you should… eat well, ideally non-processed foods, exercise and keep mentally active. Be sure to read, and I don’t mean on your phone!
Some “brain health” tips are myths… one being magic food that gives instant brain health, for example. Also, that all brain damage is always permanent.
My first job was… selling double glazing door-to-door aged 16. I was trying to save money for college. In the NHS it was gastroenterology and general medicine house officer.
The difference between NHS surgery and surgeries completed through private healthcare is… quicker access to theatre and other facilities, such as scans. Better furnished wards and food, things like that. Private surgery is done by the consultant only.
I think the NHS has… too many managers and wastage. It needs to be run by medics. In my opinion, no one party should control the NHS – it should be a cross-party team.
Singapore… has the best healthcare in the world.
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What it’s really like to be a… vet
What it’s really like to be a… royal photographer
What it’s really like to be a… bodyguard
I have operated on… more than 5,000 brains.
A brain tumour looks… grey compared to white normal brain. Removing a bullet from the brain is a memory that stands out.
A typical brain surgery takes… two to four hours. Typically, staff will talk about the operation.
If you need to go to the toilet during surgery… we have assistants, so they can take over for a while! Or we can cover the operative site with wet sterile gauze and take a break. Sometimes we do this to help control bleeding.
I break bad news to family members… with a lot of empathy and sensitivity – the hardest is when it is to parents of young patients. However, it is a skill that I’ve honed over many years and from learning from great mentors.
My plan is to retire at… 60. I would love to travel. And to carry on with volunteer medical deployments, as I currently do.
I have a standard NHS pension... members pay in 12.5% and the employer contribution rate is 23.7%.
