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MEDICAL YEAR
IN REVIEW

Expectation vs. Reality:

A Brief Look at My First Two Months

as a Vascular Surgeon

By Celso F. Uribe II, MD
I wasted. Again, as it happens so often in life, my expec-
gave my son a kiss and hug after we sang happy
tations were upended by reality.
birthday. It was cold, but not for the lack of af-
I chose vascular surgery because I wanted to be the
fection. His first birthday was on February 16,
2021, and we were at the tail end of one of the worst guy other doctors called for help. Whether it's an
winter storms in San Antonio history. My father-in- emergency in the operating room or a routine outpa-
law’s house had been without power for three days tient referral, I love helping my fellow partners in the
and the water had just sputtered out. With our luck, medical community just as much as I love helping pa-
we had decided months ago to move our family and tients. Colloquially known as the “firefighters” of the
belongings to Texas in what would end up being the hospital, vascular surgeons could be needed at a mo-
worst possible weeks we could have chosen. Our en- ment's notice, on any floor, in an array of urgent sce-
tire household was on a truck stuck on a frozen road narios. Although this may not foster the best lifestyle,
in Louisiana, and the precious week I had taken off I knew it was for me early on in my general surgery
during fellowship to make this move now seemed training. Since 2015, my goal of becoming a vascular

12 SAN ANTONIO MEDICINE • December 2021