A Surgeon's Hands

A man scheduled for high-risk heart surgery felt an inexplicable sense of dread as the date approached. Although he had chosen a highly rated surgeon, he felt he needed to consult the Rebbe. He wrote a letter and opened the Igros Kodesh to a page that dealt with medical matters.

The letter he found was written to a man who was also preparing for surgery. The Rebbe advised that man to seek a second opinion from a doctor who was a friend, and suggested that the current choice might not be the best fit for that particular operation.

Taking this as a caution, the man delayed his surgery and sought a second opinion from a different specialist. The new surgeon found a complication that the first doctor had missed, and concluded that the original surgical plan carried a serious risk.

The surgery was performed by the second doctor using a different technique and was a complete success. The patient was convinced that the words he had read in the Igros Kodesh had led him to the care he needed.