In this episode, JACS Editor-in-Chief Tom Varghese, MD, FACS, and Digital Media Editor Lillian Erdahl, MD, FACS, review 6 impactful articles from the past year, highlighting key themes shaping modern surgical practice. Dr Erdahl focuses on the surgeon as a subject, discussing research on moral distress, second-victim syndrome, health policy challenges, and peer surgical coaching. Dr Varghese then explores advances in surgical science, including pragmatic applications of artificial intelligence for risk prediction and operative documentation, as well as comparative evidence on robotic, laparoscopic, and open operation. Together, they emphasize clinically relevant research, thoughtful innovation, and ongoing critical inquiry to support surgeons and improve patient care. Listen to the podcast episodes mentioned at facs.org/operative-word.

Articles discussed:

1. Surgeon Perception and Attitude Toward the Moral Imperative: Institutionally Addressing Second Victim Syndrome in Surgery
2. A Framework for Managing Moral Challenges Related to Health Policy for the Surgeon
3. What About the Coach? Mixed Methods Study Assessing the Experience of Coaches in a Peer Surgical Coaching Program
4. Validation of Artificial Intelligence-Based POTTER Calculator in Emergency General Surgery Patients Undergoing Laparotomy: Prospective, Bi-Institutional Study
5. Enhancing Accuracy of Operative Reports with Automated Artificial Intelligence Analysis of Surgical Video
6. Robotic vs Laparoscopic vs Open Ventral Hernia Repair: Insights from a Network Meta-Analysis of Randomized Clinical Trials

Disclosure Information: Drs Varghese and Erdahl have nothing to disclose.

Learn more about the Journal of the American College of Surgeons, a monthly peer-reviewed journal publishing original contributions on all aspects of surgery, including scientific articles, collective reviews, experimental investigations, and more.

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In this episode, Tom Varghese, MD, FACS, is joined by Ziad Sifri, MD, FACS, from Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, and Matthew Linz, MD, from Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School. They discuss Drs Sifri and Linz’s recent article, “Postoperative Pain Management in the US vs Low- and Middle-Income Countries by US Surgeons,” in which they found that surgeons in the US prescribe significantly more opioids after inguinal hernia repair compared with when they operate on short-term surgical trips to low- and middle-income countries, despite continued efforts to reduce opioid overprescription in the US.

Disclosure Information: Drs Varghese, Linz, and Sifri have nothing to disclose.

To earn 0.25 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™ for this episode of the JACS Operative Word Podcast, click here to register for the course and complete the evaluation. Listeners can earn CME credit for this podcast for up to 2 years after the original air date.

Linz, Matthew S MD1; Parvin-Nejad, Fatemeh P MD2; Srinivasan, Nivetha MD3; Vegunta, Geetasravya MD1; Eng, Ashley K BS1; Kim, Eugene BA MBS; Alexander, Imani BS1; Elgammal, Fatima MD2; Benson, Ryan MD2; Benneh, Albert Y MD4; Gyakobo, Mawuli K MD5,6; Lopez, Lorena MD7; Jalloh, Samba MD8; Sifri, Ziad C MD FACS2. Postoperative Pain Management in the US vs Low-and-Middle-Income Countries by US Surgeons. Journal of the American College of Surgeons ():10.1097/XCS.0000000000001538, July 30, 2025. | DOI: 10.1097/XCS.0000000000001538

Learn more about the Journal of the American College of Surgeons, a monthly peer-reviewed journal publishing original contributions on all aspects of surgery, including scientific articles, collective reviews, experimental investigations, and more.

#JACSOperativeWord

In this episode, Lillian Erdahl, MD, FACS, is joined by Eilidh Gunn, MBChB MRCSEd, from the Surgical Sabermetrics Laboratory at the University of Edinburgh. They discuss Dr Gunn’s recent article, “What About the Coach? Mixed-Methods Study Assessing the Experience of Coaches in a Peer Surgical Coaching Program.” As peer-led surgical coaching becomes an increasingly popular professional development activity, this study explores the impact of participation on surgeons acting as coaches. Using a concurrent, mixed-methods design, results demonstrate that coaches found participation worthwhile and that it affected their own clinical practice.

Learn more about the SCOPE program here.

Disclosure Information: Drs Gunn and Erdahl have nothing to disclose.

To earn 0.25 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™ for this episode of the JACS Operative Word Podcast, click here to register for the course and complete the evaluation. Listeners can earn CME credit for this podcast for up to 2 years after the original air date.

Gunn, Eilidh GM MBChB MRCSEd1; Sinyard, Robert D MD MBA2; Cummins, Emily R PhD3; Yule, Steven PhD4; Smink, Douglas S MD, MPH, FACS5. What About the Coach? Mixed-Methods Study Assessing the Experience of Coaches in a Peer Surgical Coaching Program. Journal of the American College of Surgeons ():10.1097/XCS.0000000000001506, July 24, 2025. | DOI: 10.1097/XCS.0000000000001506

Learn more about the Journal of the American College of Surgeons, a monthly peer-reviewed journal publishing original contributions on all aspects of surgery, including scientific articles, collective reviews, experimental investigations, and more.

#JACSOperativeWord