A DOCTOR WHO NEVER GIVES UP: THE STORY OF MARAT SARSHAEV

Marat Sarshaev, head of the neurosurgery department at the National Hospital of the Office of the President, a first-category doctor, and winner of the “100 New Faces of Kazakhstan” project, is one of the leading doctors in the country. Over his career, he has performed more than three thousand complex surgeries. He recently made headlines across the country when he continued a surgery despite a strong earthquake. Sports and a twist of fate that forced him to leave a judo career helped him achieve everything.

— In high school, I was professionally involved in judo, but I broke my arm in a competition and had to give up my sports career. That’s when I decided to apply to a military school. However, my parents intervened – they really wanted one of their children to become a doctor, and since I was doing well in school, the choice fell on me.

My mother even persuaded the medical commission not to accept my documents. But I have never regretted their choice. Now, I am a doctor and continue to actively participate in sports – I managed to combine everything. My sportsman's character greatly helped me in medicine. I never looked for easy paths or professions, and when I chose medicine, I went for the most challenging specialty – neurosurgery. While still studying, I worked as a nurse in this department in Astana.

I then continued my education at the Neurosurgery Research Institute in Moscow through the “Bolashak” program. For two years, I studied under highly qualified specialists. And thanks to another twist of fate, I heard about the program on the radio, submitted my documents, and ended up in Moscow. After that, I advanced my qualifications in Turkey, France, South Korea, the UAE, and Brazil.

— Do you remember your first surgery? Were you scared to operate on a real person instead of a mannequin?

— I had been working towards it for a long time, approached the process from a professional standpoint, without emotions, with a clear head, and simply used all the knowledge I had. So, there was no barrier before the first surgery. Now I’ve performed over three thousand surgeries and always approach them with the same mindset as the first time.

— Do you have any special rituals? How do you cope with anxiety?

— I don’t have any special rituals or listen to any particular music, but during prayers, I always ask for steady hands and wish for my patients' recovery. Despite our planning, surgeries are unpredictable. Sometimes you expect a complex procedure, but it’s over in a couple of hours, and sometimes the opposite happens.

The longest operation took 13 hours. But the most important thing for me is the patient's recovery. What makes me happiest is not just their words of gratitude but seeing them years later, completely healthy, even if they were once deemed hopeless.

- How do you keep yourself in shape, considering this profession is very demanding both mentally and physically?

— Through sports, or rather the discipline it taught me. Every morning, I get up at 5:30, go for a run – it’s like meditation and a mindset for the day. I run about forty kilometers a week, ski in winter, have participated in a half marathon, and am preparing for a full one.

I plan to start swimming and cycling to become an Ironman. Life shouldn’t be routine because it slows down the brain's function. You must constantly push yourself to do something new, learn, read, acquire new skills, languages, sing, dance. Besides everything else, I’m now also engaged in public speaking and run my blog because communication is a requi rement of the times.

— What will neurosurgeons learn in the coming years, and what are your personal goals?

— The brain, like every human organ, is not fully understood, and there’s still much work for scientists and doctors. Specifically, the brain is not fully studied in terms of functionality, neurology, and psychology. So, there are many tasks and goals. In our department, we aim to introduce functional neurosurgery, treating epilepsy more deeply, particularly by resecting epileptogenic brain areas.

— Perhaps, in the future, people will be able to erase memories of traumatic events or pass talents to children through medicine?

— No one can do that yet; neurosurgery is currently addressing other, more pressing issues. As for my children, I would like one of them, and I have four, to become a doctor. But first, they need to understand that it’s a tough path requiring a lot of time, sacrifice, and deprivation. Only now can I afford a bit of time for sports and other hobbies. In any profession, you can only become a master if you fully immerse yourself in your work.

Interviewed by: Polina Shimanskaya, matritca.kz