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Mitchell Mills wrote: > = > Mr. Hallvard: > = > As a cardiac surgeon, I have faced the same decision. What I found mos= t > helpful was to ask the opinion of my colleagues. If asked, they will gl= adly > tell you when they think it's time. I stopped doing cardiac surgery in = 1988 > at age 58. I continued with thoracic and vascular surgery until age 62= , > then fully retired. > = > I too ran the pump-oxygenator system for several years during my reside= ncy > (1963-64). How things have changed since then! > = > Best of luck to you! Mitch care-partner for Betty 15/67. Dear Mitchell! Thank you for your information on how you retired. I think I will rely on my colleagues too. I have told all my coleagues about my PD, also the chief surgeon is informed. Perhaps you have met him, he is travelling much. G=F6sta Pettersson. Some= of his specialities are aortic valve operation a.m. Ross and aortic arch anneurysm where separate brain perfusion is established. It is true that the developement goes fast within perfusion/heart surgery. One year ago we started with non-invasive(?) CABG, only by the use of LIMA. The cases needing extracorporeal circulation are the more complicated ones, and the patients re getting older. We are regularly operating patients in their eighties. There are also an computer-steered(managed) heart-lung machine under developement. Perhaps my profession one day is vanished. Due to the health insurance system (social security system) here in Scandinavia it will be an economical catastrophe to me if I quit the job myself, I have to wait til I get fired. I can go on the sick-list(?) for 120 days, and then I will automatically get fired, or retire if my case is finnished in the social securety system. It is evan more complicated because I have lived =BD my adult life in Denmark, the rest in Norway. Both the two nations social sec. syst. will be affected/involved in my case. Luckily I do have a private pension-assurance. The govermentel/ nationl pension will be reduced to the minimum level due to too high privte pension. That the system here! Now I have one week off, and will go to my sommerhouse 70 km away, where gardening (alpine) is my hobby and psycotherapy(anti-stress) Look forward to hear from you again. Have a nice weekend. Hallvard