Category: Surgeons | Author: Stefano Sinicropi | Date: November 24, 2025
It’s a question that emanates in all walks of life – How do you define greatness? In athletics, people oftentimes view the greatness debate through the lens of team championships or individual accomplishments, but what about other professions? How do you define greatness in the medical world, or more specifically, among surgeons?
Interestingly, researchers recently posed that question to surgeons, healthcare workers and patients to get a better idea of what a “great surgeon” means to them. We take a closer look at how these groups defined greatness in today’s blog.
What Does It Mean To Be A Great Surgeon?
For the study, researchers asked participants to respond to an open-ended questionnaire that was designed to identify three qualities and three shortcomings defining a great surgeon. Responses with similar meaning were combined into word groups and labeled within four themes: human qualities, technical surgical skills (TSS), non-technical skills (NTS) and knowledge.
4,760 qualities and 4,373 shortcomings were obtained from a total of 1,620 respondents, including 385 surgeons, 291 patients, 565 operating theater (OT) health professionals and 379 non-operating theater professionals. When looking at the data broadly, the three characteristics that were more prominent when defining a great surgeon were:
- Dexterity – Skilled hands are a must among individuals tasked with making intricate and precise maneuvers during the surgical procedure.
- Meticulousness – Making sure that no detail is overlooked is another feature of a great surgeon.
- Empathy – Greatness isn’t just defined by what happens on the operating table. Patients and healthcare professionals say that the best surgeons can also empathize with each patient’s unique plight.
Some other findings from the study include:
- Compared to surgeons, non-OT healthcare professionals and patients put more emphasis on human qualities like empathy. (29% vs. 39% and 42%, respectively).
- OT health professionals ranked non-technical skills higher than surgeons (35% vs. 22%).
- Knowledge was more important for surgeons than for all other professional categories.
- The three qualities that most defined a bad surgeon were arrogance, temperamental nature and clumsiness.
So while skilled, careful movements define a great surgeon in the operating room, patients and providers also recognize the importance of skills like empathy and humanity when it comes to interacting with a patient before and after a procedure.
Contact a Minnesota Spine Surgeon
Dr. Sinicropi embodies these qualities, and he wants to prove to you that he is great at helping his patients achieve a desired outcome from their spine procedure. To see these traits firsthand, or to talk with him about a back issue that you’re dealing with, pick up the phone and connect with Dr. Sinicropi and the team at The Midwest Spine & Brain Institute today at (651) 430-3800.
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