This episode reframes limb salvage as a marathon, not a miracle—arguing that persistent, team-based care prevents many unnecessary amputations and protects patients' lives, function, and dignity. Dr. G explains the scale of the problem, why amputations are often a system failure, and the five pillars of successful limb salvage: persistence, consistency, knowledge, team-based care, and patient empowerment. Key principles include vascular assessment before amputation, offloading, infection control, and timely referrals. The episode calls for ethical decision-making, better access to modern wound care tools, and patient advocacy: slow, consistent medicine over rushed amputations, and second opinions when limb salvage options haven’t been explored.

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“What did the council decide on item 42?” — answered with the speaker and the moment.

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