5 Secrets to Spine Surgeons Achieving Better Work & Life Balance

Renato Bosita, MD, MBA, is a fellowship-trained spine surgeon with the Texas Back Institute in Plano. He completed his orthopedic surgery residency at Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood, Ill., and served a spine surgery fellowship at the University Hospitals of Cleveland under Henry Bohlman, MD. Dr. Bosita is married to a physician, and the couple has two children, ages 4 and 8. Dr. Bosita is on the board of managers at both Presbyterian Hospital of Rockwall and the Plano Physicians Group in Texas. Despite all of his professional involvement and achievements, he has managed to maintain a fulfilling, happy life outside of work.

Here are five ways Dr. Bosita recommends achieving a balance between a successful spine practice and a happy home life.

1. Set your priorities. While developing and maintaining a thriving spine practice is a top goal, spine surgeons must also work to make family and friends a high priority or risk those relationships deteriorating. Though not revenue generating, endeavors such as spending time with important people and pursuing enjoyable activities will increase a physician's quality of life.

“Orthopedic and spine surgeons have an ‘all-in’ mentality”, Dr. Bosita says. While the passion for treating patients and performing research will help a surgeon's practice become successful, it can also lead to the demise of important relationships.

"When you set the right priorities, you will accomplish all you need to," Dr. Bosita says. "Once a week I have to cut my OR time short to take my 4-year-old to swim lessons, but that's OK because that is time very well spent."

2. Always strive to achieve balance. Surgeons have incredibly demanding and busy schedules, and work emergencies often have to take precedence over other commitments. However, the goal should always be to strive for balance between work and "real life."

Dr. Bosita is also on his hospital's finance committee. If a meeting and a family event conflict, then he will either try to reschedule one of the gatherings or give his proxy vote away to another physician, if possible.

"Becoming a workaholic will not make me a better doctor, but balancing my life properly will," he says.

Sometimes surgeons need to take a step back and see where they can delegate non-surgical work, such as by having a physician's assistant see patients in the clinic so everyone can go home on time.

3. Take control of your calendar. When events or activities are important, they should be scheduled into a surgeon's daily calendar just as OR time would.

Many surgeons do not manage their own calendars and have secretaries or assistants tell them where to be and when. Take back control of your schedule, Dr. Bosita says. Know what your work demands are for a given day and if events come up that are of greater priority, clear your schedule.

"The world will not end if I don't operate every day until night time. I would go insane if I didn't see my wife and kids enough," he says. "When I put in my calendar there's a piano recital at 6 p.m. Thursday, I make sure my secretary knows I cannot be late leaving the hospital."

4. Create working vacations. Bringing family members to a conference location for a simultaneous family vacation keeps a physician from being away too much and allows his or her family to visit destinations they might not otherwise have gone to.

Dr. Bosita attended a board meeting in Colorado Springs this summer. Rather than going alone and spending time away from his family, he brought four children, two parents in-law and his wife along.

"There's often time throughout the day to see them," he says. "When the meeting is over, we will spend an additional three days there to fish, swim and watch fireworks."

Both of Dr. Bosita's parents were physicians, and some of his most memorable vacations were in Italy, Greece and England with his parents at medical meetings. His parents set the example for him that physicians can be active in organizations meeting worldwide while still reserving time to build family bonds and memories.

5. Use car time well. Balancing hectic in- and out-of-work schedules requires physicians make the most of every moment, including time spent in the car. Dr. Bosita often spends time in the car with his wife and children and he takes the opportunity to get to know them better.

"When we are driving, the kids are trapped with no choice but to talk to us," he says. "Say no to the iPad and the DVD player, and ask them questions. We are always surprised with how much they know."

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