This Medtech Company Launches a Cookbook for Heart Surgeons

A collaboration between an eminent heart surgeon, a Michelin-starred chef, and global medtech company Getinge. To help heart surgeons improve their dexterity, they are now introducing a one-of-a-kind cookbook with recipes that require surgical precision.

While medical devices in the OR have the potential to revolutionise patient care, their efficacy is intrinsically tied to the surgeon’s dexterity, coordination, and meticulous attention to detail. Recognising this, Getinge, a leading medtech company, has chosen to honour one of the most crucial tools during surgery – the skilled hands that operate in ORs worldwide. In a unique tribute, they have created a cookbook for heart surgeons.

“The Heart Surgeon’s Cookbook celebrates their phenomenal skills, whilst also being a great training tool. Surgeon’s consistently practice their skills – either in the operating room or at home, to maintain both their focus, physical and mental dexterity. This cookbook can help them to do that in an innovative and creative way,” said Carsten Blecker, chief commercial officer at Getinge. 

All nine recipes in the book are conceived and developed by New York-based cardiovascular and thoracic Surgeon Dr. Nirav Patel MD and Fredrik Berselius, holder of two Michelin stars and founder and owner of Aska restaurant in New York. The recipes include at least one surgical technique familiar to surgeons that puts dexterity to the test: including precise cutting, injecting in a small, confined area, surgical stitching, anatomic dissecting and repetition, plus gentle handling, and concentration skills. 

“A special cookbook for heart surgeons, for dexterity training. I just couldn’t say no. Dexterity leads to precision. Without precision, surgery is not effective. You must understand the importance of being effortlessly nimble and precise. It's not that hard to see the parallels with high-end cooking,” said Dr. Patel, who performs approximately 350 surgeries every year.

In addition to the book, the campaign also includes a short documentary about the project, in-depth content such as interviews, a landing page, and social media assets. Behind the campaign is the creative collective Forsman & Bodenfors. 

“Surgical staff usually spend hours training their dexterity inside and outside the OR. Some take up hobbies like playing guitar or folding origami. The Heart Surgeon's Cookbook is a whole new way of fine-tuning surgical skills, and a celebration to the skills that surgeons already possess,” said Leo Dal, creative at Forsman & Bodenfors.