Navigating Language and Surgery: A Woman's Experience in an International Neurosurgery Residency

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Language was central to the author's neurosurgery residency, impacting communication, confidence, and perceived credibility in a high-pressure environment.
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The author faced challenges in acquiring functional fluency in Hebrew while simultaneously learning neurosurgical skills and hospital workflows.
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Supervised interactions were key for assessing language readiness, as there was no formal Hebrew examination in the residency program.
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The experience highlights broader issues of linguistic adaptation faced by international medical trainees across various specialties and countries.
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Multilingual processing created cognitive load, but participation in clinical settings helped consolidate language skills over time.

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