Shattered to Unstoppable: How a Life-Altering Accident Reshaped a Master Surgeon

Welcome to this episode of the Society of Robotic Surgery (SRS) podcast series, hosted by past president Dr. Martin Martino. In this premiere episode, Dr. Martino sits down with fellow past president and close friend, Dr. Sharona Ross, to explore her extraordinary journey through medicine and life. Dr. Ross details her path from shadowing a pathologist at age 13 in Ashdod, Israel, to navigating mandatory military service as the head of a base clinic. She recounts her subsequent rise as a pioneering surgeon, mastering complex hepatopancreaticobiliary (HPB) and foregut surgeries and completing nearly 500 robotic Whipple procedures.   The conversation also dives deep into Dr. Ross's groundbreaking work with single-incision laparoscopy and her 16-year legacy founding the international Women in Surgery community. She opens up about surviving a severe, life-altering bicycle accident that resulted in a traumatic brain injury and temporary paralysis. Detailing her rapid recovery and return to the operating room, she shares how this experience transformed her perspective on work-life balance, the values of the younger generation, and the power of female mentorship. Links for Society of Robotic Surgery LinkedIn | YouTube | SRobotics.org