Recommendation letter

First of all, you are so lucky, you have to share tips on how you were able to shadow someone this summer, with covid its been hard. Second, definitely you should ask him but it depends on what your specific obligations were, How much time did you spend with, did you interact with him on a daily basis? etc. Overall it depends just how good he can vouch for not just your skills but your personality. A lot of factors goes into it, a teacher maybe be able to write a better recommendation letter than him. His credentials do play a huge factor tho.

I'd say that you should ask the surgeon for a recommendation. You can help him write a strong one for you by giving him a short general outline - the outline can use bullet points to highlight your academics, extracurriculars, personal qualities, and your goals for college and beyond. Hope this helps!

Since his credentials are so impressive on paper, it would reflect well on you to have that experience showcased in your application in some way for sure, and depending on your pseudo-relationship with him, could make a highly impressive recommendation. However, you must consider how much time you've spent around and with him, how well he knows your work/study style and work ethic, and how many genuine conversations you've had with him. All in all, I think it would be a worthwhile idea, and although it may reflect less personal aspects of your character and personality, it would likely showcase how you work, your work ethic, your level of focus, etc which are all academically important considerations.