This week on Womanity, Dr Amaleya Goneos-Malka speaks with Dr Malini Bhana, a specialist general surgeon focused on hepatopancreatobiliary (HPB) surgery, one of medicine’s most intricate and demanding fields. From an early interest in research to discovering the practical, problem-solving power of surgery, Dr Bhana’s journey reflects curiosity, discipline and a commitment to helping patients through some of the most vulnerable moments of their lives.

Finding Her Place in the Operating Theatre

Initially drawn to the academic and research side of medicine, Dr Bhana could not imagine herself in clinical work. That changed during internship. Despite warnings that surgery would be gruelling, she found a field that matched the way she thinks: assess the problem, plan a solution, act decisively and help the patient recover. The hands-on nature of the work made everything fall into place.

The Precision and Challenge of HPB Surgery

After being captivated by the speed and adrenaline of trauma surgery, Dr Bhana was drawn to the deeper planning and technical precision of HPB procedures involving the liver, pancreas, gallbladder and bile ducts. These complex operations demand detailed anatomical knowledge, meticulous preparation and sustained concentration. For her, that difficulty is precisely part of the appeal.

A Defining Whipple Procedure

One patient remains unforgettable: the first person on whom Dr Bhana performed a Whipple procedure independently during her fellowship. The six-to-eight-hour operation for pancreatic cancer involves removing several structures and performing a complex reconstruction. Guiding that patient from diagnosis through surgery, recovery and discharge marked the moment she felt she had achieved a long-held professional goal.

Laser Focus, Stamina and Humanity

Long operations require both physical fitness and an extraordinary ability to focus. Dr Bhana explains that when a life is in her hands, the patient on the table becomes the only priority. Yet she does not see emotional investment as a weakness. Caring deeply must be balanced with clear decision-making, perspective, trusted colleagues, opportunities to debrief and a life beyond medicine.

Women’s Health: Symptoms That Should Not Be Dismissed

The conversation offers an important health message for women. Dr Bhana discusses women’s greater susceptibility to gallstones and certain liver adenomas, and cautions against dismissing persistent upper or right-sided abdominal pain, nausea or vomiting. Her message is simple: listen to your body, seek medical advice and do not ignore symptoms that continue.

Rethinking a Profession Built Around Extreme Hours

Although more women are entering surgery, Dr Bhana is candid about the structural obstacles that remain. Training, on-call duties and unpredictable operations do not fit neatly around family responsibilities, while extreme fatigue can become unsafe for clinicians and patients alike. Flexible programmes are emerging, but the challenge is to create sustainable pathways without depriving trainees of essential experience.

Representation Changes What Women Believe Is Possible

For Dr Bhana, gender equality is about more than equal numbers. It means a workplace where gender does not limit opportunity or diminish the value placed on someone’s contribution. Seeing women perform complex surgery, lead professional bodies and speak on international platforms can expand other women’s sense of what is possible. Opportunity should be open to all, with achievement grounded in skill and merit.

Mentorship Opens Doors

Mentors played a decisive part in Dr Bhana becoming an HPB surgeon. To her, mentorship goes far beyond teaching technique: it is having someone who believes in you, helps you navigate difficult decisions and encourages you to pursue opportunities you may not recognise in yourself. Her involvement in teaching, the European-African Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary Association and the HPB Insights podcast allows her to pass that support forward while connecting with a wider international community.

Bringing Specialist Care Closer to Home

Establishing her own practice at Mediclinic Limpopo has given Dr Bhana the opportunity to shape care around meticulous preparation, continuity and individual attention rather than volume. It also brings scarce specialist services closer to patients who previously had to travel to Johannesburg or Pretoria, allowing them to remain nearer to the families and support networks that matter during treatment.

Define Success for Yourself

Dr Bhana credits a supportive family, inspiring women, hard work and the freedom to follow what she loves. Her closing message to girls and young women is to take opportunities, resist other people’s limitations and define success on their own terms. A meaningful life can hold ambition and personal fulfilment together and when no one like you is visible in the room, sometimes the task is to become the first and open the door for those who follow.

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