Each year on Veterans Day, the American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS) and the Congress of Neurological Surgeons (CNS) pay tribute to the contributions of the many military neurosurgeons who have made significant contributions and sacrifices. Whether on the battlefield, in the operating room or research lab, neurosurgeons have served our country with distinction and grace throughout history.
ICYMI, Neurosurgery Blog has featured many of these stories. Once again we encourage our readers to take a trip down memory lane. Read how former AANS president Roberto C. Heros, MD, FAANS(L), volunteered for the ill-fated Bay of Pigs invasion. Remember the horrors of the Vietnam War, as seen through the eyes of Patrick J. Kelly, MD, FAANS(L), while he was stationed in Da Nang during the bloodiest year of that conflict. Learn how neurosurgeons, like COL (ret) Rocco A. Armonda, MD, FAANS, have taken their skills from the operating room into the battlefield. Recognize the many women in neurosurgery who have made significant contributions and sacrifice. Recall the recent efforts of the U.S. Comfort and Mercy, and how neurosurgeons came to the aid of Los Angeles and New York City as COVID-19 stressed the hospital ecosystem in the early days of the pandemic.
Thank you to these and all other veterans who have served our nation with selflessness and dignity to protect the freedoms we have all come to take for granted. Your service can never be honored enough. Happy Veterans Day, one and all.
- Military Faces of Neurosurgery – A Hero So Named
- Military Faces of Neurosurgery – Vietnam 1968-1969: A Place and Year Like No Other
- Paying Tribute: Women as the Military Faces of Neurosurgery
- Military Faces: Donald O. Quest, MD
- Service as a Neurosurgeon: My Mentors as the Military Face of Neurosurgery
- Military Faces of Neurosurgery – Silver Lining in the Black Cloud of the Civil War: Improved Medical Education
- COL (ret) Rocco A. Armonda MD, FAANS: Bringing the Cutting Edge of Cerebrovascular Neurosurgery to the Battlefield
- DoD/VA Lead the Way in the Opioid Crisis
- Providing Comfort and Mercy: The U.S. Military’s COVID-19 Response Effort
