Put Yourself First with Simon Maltais, MD

Physician's Guide to Doctoring with Bradley B. Block, MD

Dr. Simon Maltais is an active cardiac surgeon and author of Healthcare Anonymous: Learn How to Put Yourself First While Pursuing a Calling. He served as a previous vice-chair of the Mayo Clinic, has a doctorate degree in biomedical engineering and heart regeneration. He is an internationally recognized leader in the field of heart transplantation, mechanical heart devices, and alternative cardiac interventions. He has worked in two different countries and health systems and provides a unique perspective on the delivery of care and its inherent challenges for healthcare workers, particularly in these difficult and tiring times.

Simon led 2 world-renowned programs in his specialty and has pioneered numerous novel approaches for advanced cardiac surgery interventions. At the age of 35, he was among the youngest promoted associate professors at a nationally recognized institution. Simon is a frequent keynote speaker, has published more than 160 articles and has contributed to numerous books. He sounds like everything your department chairman hoped you would be. If you were anything like me, you were a big disappointment. Turns out, all that success wasn’t making Simon happy. It was a pressure cooker that finally cracked. We talk about the toll it took on him, his family, his coworkers and his HR department, and the insight he has gained on how to keep yourself out of that pressure cooker. He talks about the fulfilling life he has now built for himself.