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Melissa Red Hoffman

MD, ND, FACS

Dr. Red Hoffman is a trauma surgeon, hospice physician, TEDx speaker, and the author of a forthcoming book, Life After Death: A Trauma Surgeon's Approach to Surviving Violent Loss, who utilizes her unique background to speak and write about grief, death, and survival.

Surgeon

Initially trained as a naturopath and a yoga teacher, Dr. Red now practices a unique blend of trauma surgery and hospice care.

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Writer

Dr. Red's essays have appeared in HuffPost, JAMA, and KevinMD. She also writes The Surgical Soul with RedMD newsletter on Substack.

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Speaker

Dr. Red speaks locally, nationally, and internationally about surgery and palliative care, grief, and surviving violent loss. She was one of nine speakers at TEDx Asheville 2024.

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Making Meaning After Violent Death

More than half of Americans are survivors of at least one violent death. In this acclaimed TEDx talk, Dr. Red speaks as both a trauma surgeon and a survivor, naming what violent grief actually looks and feels like, and inviting communities to walk alongside survivors as they work to make meaning out of the worst days of their lives.

The Surgical Soul with Red MD

The surgical soul is an area deep in the abdomen, about the size of a silver dollar, centered on the head of the pancreas and surrounded by multiple structures and several large blood vessels.  Dr. Ken Mattox, an international leader in the field of Trauma Surgery, defines injuries to this area as "soul wounds" as they are often deadly to the patient and are very challenging for the surgeon to access and to manage.

Inspired by its namesake, The Surgical Soul with Red MD dives deeply into the lives of surgeons, exploring their accomplishments and joy, as well as their struggles and pain.

If you've ever been curious about the secret lives of surgeons, this podcast is for you.