Neurosurgeon Rondhir Jithoo has led an extraordinary life, growing up in South Africa with a medical father and deeply thinking anthropologist mother. He obtained his medical degree from the Nelson Mandela School of Medicine at the University of Natal and trained in neurosurgery at South Africa’s Wentworth Hospital where he received the Registrars Prize from the South African Society of Neurosurgeons and obtained his neurosurgery fellowship in 2000.  After relocating to Australia, he was awarded the Australasian Fellowship in Neurosurgery in 2004 and worked at Royal Melbourne Hospital where he developed an interest in spinal trauma, anterior spinal surgery and cranial surgery. This interest in cranial surgery took him to Frances’ famous neurosurgical epicentre in Montpellier to further his study and skills in the art of awake craniotomy.  At Montpellier Rondhir was able to develop skills reflecting the modern connectionist approach to neurosurgery which has revolutionised treatment of brain tumours. The traditional concept proposed by Paul Broca, and still taught, is that the brain is organised into different areas controlling specific functions. This localisation theory has now been disproven, and work with contributions from Montpellier has shown that the brain is organised in dynamic interactive networks capable of constantly readapting. This connectionist approach explains why some patients can lead a perfectly normal life despite having a large tumour affecting an area of the brain previously considered crucial for brain function. The brain is able to compensate for lesions and its incredible plasticity allows it to reorganise itself to continue functioning normally. In awake craniotomy, providing lesions have not caused disability, tumours may be safely removed in real time using cortical mapping. By keeping the patient awake to verbal commands the impact of surgical resection can be carefully assessed and damage minimised. After returning to Australia with this skill Rondhir served with the Australian armed forces in Iraq, assessing and providing acute neurosurgical assistance for battlefield traumas and is now intrinsically involved in contributing his skill and expertise to establishing and independent neurosurgical service in Darwin where he travels at repeat intervals throughout the year. He is a head and clinic consultant of Neurosurgery at Alfred Health in Melbourne and is a member of the Victorian Audit of Surgical Mortality Committee as well as a postgraduate examiner for the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons. I found Ron to be deeply philosophical and spiritual in his approach to the art of medicine and I’m sure you will enjoy this conversation with him. References : Mr Rondhir Jithoo: www.healthshare.com.au  www.alfredhealth.org.au