How to recycle a used brain surgeon.

The neurosurgical apprenticeship is arduous, and the rigor of the discipline combined with the demands of any type of neurosurgical practice is, if not exhausting, at least wearying. By the age of 60 or so, operating all-day and taking call all night is no longer as compelling as it was earlier. However, preparing to retire, we might discover that having become a board-certified neurosurgeon has excluded many other options. Accustomed to working, complete retirement is not appealing to some. Maybe there is more to learn, more delight to be found, more care to be rendered.