What happens when the surgeon behind the scalpel hits a breaking point?
In this episode, Dr. Scott Ellner, DO shares the story of how a near-death trauma encounter shaped his path to medicine, why leadership must start with empathy, and how a single phone call stopped him from ending his life.
This is an extraordinary look into purpose, identity, burnout, courage — and what it means to rise after the hardest wipeouts of our lives.
Dr. Scott Ellner is a trauma surgeon, author, and healthcare leader who has lived on both sides of medical vulnerability — the elation of healing, and the despair that nearly cost him his life.
In this conversation with host Dr. Peter Crane, Scott shares the story of witnessing a lifesaving field intubation that changed his career direction forever. He also opens up about the emotional collapse that came years later: a painful breakup, exhaustion, and a suicidal impulse that only stopped because a friend happened to call at the perfect moment.
Scott discusses the emotional truth behind surgical identity, medical mistakes, patient relationships, resilience, and why empathy — not authority — is the most powerful form of leadership.
He also talks about his career transition into senior leadership, the parallels between surfing and surgery, and his book Wipe Out, Rise Up.
This episode is a raw, powerful reminder that even the strongest physicians are human — and that connection, meaning, and purpose remain medicine’s greatest force.
Top 3 Takeaways
1. Physicians are vulnerable — and that’s not a weakness.
Suicidal ideation is more common in medicine than most people admit. Opening space for honesty saves lives.
2. Leadership without empathy isn’t leadership.
Real influence starts with listening, trust, and connection — not titles, pressure, or intimidation.
3. Identity evolves.
Careers change. Meaning shifts. And sometimes stepping out of the OR is the most courageous form of growth.
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Full Transcript
Physician Suicide and Mental Health 0:00
Yeah, I mean, suicidal ideation is something that I think is more common than we realize, especially among physicians. In actual suicide, it's like 1 in 400 physicians annually. And even just this past year, we've had a couple of our physicians in our network here died by suicide. I hit a low point. You know, I think you get to a situation where you're not taking care of yourself, you are not eating right, your not sleeping. And I had been on call, and I was in a relationship that I thought, ya know I love this person, she loved me.
and i wasn't around. i was busy, i preparing for my career and couldn't go out and party on Cinco de Mayo. I was on call dealing with sometimes unpleasant things that happen to come into the emergency department, but that's part of who we are. We deal with it. It doesn't matter what your background is, who you are, if you're sick or injured, we take care of you. And that evening I got a call from the Emergency Department and they said, yeah, unfortunately has a retained foreign body and got to take him to the OR.
And just before I'm about to go to an OR, I get a call from my girlfriend. She said, you're no fun. I want to break up. Click. Got a patient. Get through the case and then kind of just up the rest of the night and on post call early the next morning, still just kind going without processing or thinking. And something just inside me said, I'm going to kill myself. And I knew exactly where I was going go, how I going do it.
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