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True Cut: The surgeon's blade cuts both ways

Written by ENT Surgeon David Alderson, True Cut is a new play that asks: “What happens when things go wrong in healthcare?” It brings the hidden world of the operating theatre onto the stage.

When promising, young surgeon, Jo, gets out of his depth, the repercussions are profound — for everyone involved.

In the papers, on TV, on social, medicine’s a pantomime: voyeuristic entertainment masquerading as news. There are really only two stories about surgeons: there’s the Hero’s Journey of unflagging compassion and selfless dedication in the face of overwhelming odds, of miracle cures wrought from challenge and graft; and then there are the evil villains for us to boo at and hiss: incompetent charlatans who should be named, shamed and punished to protect the innocent.

True Cut presents a dramatic biopsy cored from the hidden heart of surgery in the real words of those who work with our warm, wet flesh: constantly striving for the perfection that their patients deserve but fated, as humans, to sometimes fall short. It’s the story of those who learn to cut—and must learn how to live with the things that they do.

Following the performance there will be refreshments and the opportunity to participate in a Q&A with the creative team.

AGE 18+ True Cut portrays the events surrounding a tragic mistake in clinical practice, which has profound implications for the physical and mental health of all those involved. Audience members who have experienced similar traumas may find aspects of the performance distressing.

Purchase a ticket for the play

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Registered address: Patient Safety Learning, China Works SB203, 100 Black Prince Road Vauxhall, London, SE1 7SJ

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