Why did you join AAOS?
I joined AAOS as I began my orthopaedic journey for the incredible learning tools like ResStudy and JAAOS. I have remained an active member to connect with colleagues, stay up to date on treatment recommendations for my patients, learn how to grow and thrive within my practice, and advance the specialty of orthopaedic surgery overall.
How do you define success?
To me, success is as simple as earning my patients’ trust and their recommendations to their family and friends.
Who is your biggest inspiration and why?
I am blessed to have many sources of inspiration. Dr. Rinelda Horton and Dr. Antonia Chen were the first women total joints surgeons I ever met. Not only did they encourage me to pursue their subspecialty and helped me along that path, but they continue to inspire me daily by their philanthropic work with Women Orthopaedist Global Outreach (WOGO) and research successes. Dr. Letitia Bradford, Executive Director of Nth Dimensions, has been a source of guidance since I applied to orthopaedic surgery residency, and has connected me to numerous other mentors. And of course, I am inspired by the surgeons who trained me and pushed me to always be better: Dr. Anthony Rankin, Dr. Robert Wilson, Dr. Laura Tosi and Dr. Craig Thomas in Residency and Dr. William Bugbee, Dr. Anna Kulidjian, Dr. Steve Copp in Fellowship.
What do you love most about AAOS?
I love how AAOS encourages innovation by helping me learn from my peers, courses and educational materials.
What advice would you give to new members of AAOS?
Take advantage of the many opportunities AAOS offers to learn, network, advance our field and advocate for our specialty.
Tell us a fun fact about yourself that not many people know?
I sustained a fracture dislocation of my right ankle as a PGY2, and instead of calling 911, I reduced myself and called my chief to pick me up and take me to the ER. Turns out, adrenaline really is a powerful drug!