Vivekanand Palavali

Vivekanand (Vivek) Palavali, M.D. is an Indian-American neurosurgeon, author, and award-winning film maker. He specializes in cranial surgery, spinal surgery and neurosurgical trauma. He is board certified in neurosurgery. Dr. Palavali established his private practice in Flint, Michigan in 1995 after completing his residency in neurosurgery at the University of Chicago in July 1995. Dr. Palavali has also pursued his interest in neurosurgery by participating in neuroscience research at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, and is a member of the North American Spine Society (NASS), as well as many other national and state medical associations.
Dr. Palavali is influenced by Epicurus which informs his passions: writing and film making. Vivek is also a desired speaker at seminars and conferences in the skeptic, secular humanist, and atheist communities.
He conveys his message of how to find and keep real happiness in his book, A Mindful Life: A Brain Surgeon's Personal Experiences and Philosophical Reflections on Living Life Fully, published by Blue Sun Press in 2006. Also, in that year he published Loving Life While Accepting Death in The Humanist magazine.
His first film Creator of God: A Brain Surgeon's Story, has won several awards.
Currently he is filming a new documentary titled, Bitter pill:Health Care in America to be released in 2012.
In 2010 Dr. Palavali put together the Humanism and Peace Film Festival.