Advertise on podcast: Lessons in Orthopaedic Leadership: An AOA Podcast

Social media is already shaping orthopaedic surgery, but the real question is how to use it without turning your professional life into a performance. We sit down with Dr. Mary Mulcahey, Chief of Sports Medicine at Loyola University Medical Center, to talk about what actually works for physicians who want to learn, connect, and lead in a fast-moving digital world. Her approach is refreshingly simple: focus on using platforms as tools for education, community, and professional development. We also get into why she launched her own medical leadership podcast, Lead Change, after realizing there was a gap in content about leadership in medicine and strategic career transitions. Getting the first job is one thing. Moving from clinician to leader, taking on administration, or stepping into department and hospital leadership is another. Dr. Mulcahey shares how conversations with physicians, coaches, and authors can turn into practical lessons you can apply in your own practice, team, and training program. If you’ve ever wondered how a busy surgeon keeps a consistent podcast cadence, we unpack the behind-the-scenes work: recruiting guests, scheduling, editing, and creating social media snippets that meet people where they are. We also talk platforms, including why Instagram can be such a strong fit for orthopaedic surgeons, how to start by observing before posting, and why social media should never feel stressful or controversial. Subscribe for more conversations on the future of orthopedic surgery, share this with a colleague who’s hesitant about social media, and leave a review.

If orthopaedic surgeons stop showing up, who decides what our profession becomes? We sit down with Dr. Fred Azar, past president of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, a longtime leader and current Department Chair at Campbell Clinic Orthopaedics, to talk about the future of organizational involvement in orthopaedic surgery and why it matters more than ever as healthcare grows more complex. We get practical about the pressures surgeons feel right now: hospital employment, limited reimbursement for memberships, shrinking time, and the reality that many clinicians no longer want to “fly to learn.” Dr. Azar argues that the winning model is not meeting-based societies but connected knowledge networks where education, mentorship, data science, AI, and shared outcomes move fast and reach surgeons where they live. The standard for engagement changes too: it has to be meaningful, efficient, and clearly tied to impact for patients. If you care about the future of musculoskeletal care, this is a conversation about unity, credibility, and showing up before someone else writes the rules. Subscribe for more, share this with a colleague, and leave a review with your take: what would make organizational involvement worth your time today?

Ballistic missiles overhead at 2 a.m. Surgeons back in the OR at sunrise. A city buying groceries and sending kids to school while medevacs arrive around the clock. That contrast is the setting for our conversation with Dr. Roman Hayda, Chief of Orthopaedic Trauma at Rhode Island Hospital and a retired US Army colonel who has traveled to Ukraine repeatedly to support frontline trauma hospitals. We trace how his Ukrainian roots and military surgical career shaped a calling for war surgery, then zoom in on what makes the current conflict medically different. With contested airspace and relentless drone surveillance, traditional evacuation assumptions collapse. When you can’t fly a helicopter and you can’t safely drive into the kill zone, the “golden hour” becomes a moving target and the downstream impact shows up in limb salvage decisions, prolonged tourniquet times, infection risk, and a growing need for amputation care and complex reconstruction. We also dig into leadership lessons for any orthopaedic surgeon considering humanitarian work: arrive with humility, listen first, adapt to limited resources, and treat teaching as a two-way exchange. Finally, we talk practical ways to help even if you never get on a plane, from donating external fixation resources to supporting reputable NGOs and advocating for sustained support. Subscribe for more conversations on the future of orthopaedic surgery, share this with a colleague who cares about trauma systems and global surgery, and leave a review with your biggest takeaway or question.

“I’m fine” is one of the most expensive sentences in health care, because it can hide pain, lost function, fear, and stalled recovery. We talk with Dr. Judy Baumhauer, a national leader in orthopaedic surgery and outcomes measurement, about how patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) give patients a real voice in their care and give clinicians a clearer signal about what’s working. We get specific about PROMIS and why computer adaptive testing can measure physical function, pain interference, and even depression in just a few minutes, then trend those scores across an episode of care. Dr. Baumhauer explains how her team scaled PROMs from orthopaedics to a system-wide workflow, how results show up in the electronic health record, and why the numbers are most powerful when they spark a better conversation rather than replace one. Then we zoom out to the future of value-based care in orthopaedics: CMS requirements, public reporting, bundled payments, and the risk of choosing the wrong instrument. We dig into why certain mandated surveys can blur pain and function, how comorbidities and ceiling effects can skew “improvement,” and why PROMIS crosswalks could help standardize reporting while lowering implementation costs. If you care about patient-centered care, orthopaedic quality measurement, and where reimbursement is heading, subscribe, share this with a colleague, and leave a review with your take: should PROMIS become the default language for outcomes reporting?

The next wave in orthopaedic surgery isn’t just surgical technique it’s how care gets organized, measured, and paid for. We sit down with Dr. Aaron Chamberlain, senior medical director for Intermountain’s musculoskeletal clinical program, to unpack why vertically integrated healthcare systems can be a powerful engine for value-based care and what that means for surgeons who want to lead, not just react. We talk candidly about “risk” and why taking on financial accountability can actually unlock better medicine: clearer incentives, tighter alignment with payers, and a sharper focus on outcomes across the full episode of care. Aaron shares how Intermountain uses deep data infrastructure, enterprise dashboards, and careful patient cohorting to reduce unwarranted variation and make cost and quality visible to clinicians. If you’ve ever wondered how an Epic-era analytics platform can change real-world practice patterns, you’ll hear the nuts and bolts. You’ll also get a concrete care redesign example: shifting appropriate hand procedures from the hospital or surgery center into the clinic, then using shared savings to reward the extra work required to make the change safe and scalable. We connect that playbook to broader trends like bundled payments and the CMS TEAM model, and we close with leadership lessons that translate anywhere: keep physicians involved, stay close to the bedside, and “fall in love with the problem” before you pitch a solution. If you found this useful, subscribe to the AOA Lessons in Leadership Podcast series, share the episode with a colleague, and leave a review with the value-based care question you’re wrestling with right now.

We sit down with Dr. Paul Anderson, a nationally recognized orthopaedic spine surgeon and longtime leader in bone health, to explain how bone fragility quietly drives pseudoarthrosis, hardware failure, periprosthetic fracture, and revision surgery across orthopaedics, including spine fusion, total hip and knee arthroplasty, shoulder procedures, and sports medicine repairs. Our goal is simple: help you make bone health optimization a normal part of elective surgical planning, not an extra task that never fits the schedule.  We start by clearing up a common trap: relying on a DEXA T-score alone. Dr. Anderson walks us through a more operational definition of clinical osteoporosis that combines bone mineral density, fragility fracture history, and the FRAX 10-year fracture risk calculator. That broader view catches the patients who “do not look osteoporotic” on paper but still have fragile bone and higher risk of poor outcomes after surgery.  From there, we lay out a step-by-step workflow you can actually run in clinic: who to screen, when to order DEXA, how to use imaging clues like CT Hounsfield units, and why orthopaedic surgeons should feel confident interpreting DEXA quality and results. We also cover how to build referral pathways using fracture liaison services, how to think about antiresorptive vs anabolic medications, and what timing looks like when you decide to delay surgery to improve bone strength.  If you want fewer failures, fewer fractures, and more predictable fixation, bone health has to be part of the plan. Subscribe and share this with a colleague.

Great leaders aren’t born in a boardroom—they’re forged in moments where stakes are high, information is messy, and people need clarity. That’s the lens we bring to a wide-ranging conversation with Dr. Mike Archdeacon, trauma surgeon and long-serving chair at the University of Cincinnati, on how to navigate leadership without losing the joy of clinical work. We dig into the real mechanics of leading a modern orthopaedic department: building an executive committee that actually decides, giving vice chairs ownership, and using a predictable cadence to turn hot-button issues into shared choices. Mike breaks down a major communication miss during vendor consolidation and how he’d do it differently—define decision rights early, share constraints, and close the loop with a clear rationale. From AOA’s Chair Forum to intentional mentorship, we explore why peer spaces matter and how to spot and grow emerging leaders with targeted skill building in finance, conflict, philanthropy, and strategy. If you care about orthopaedic leadership, succession planning, and the balance between the scalpel and the C-suite, this conversation offers a practical, human roadmap. Subscribe, share with a colleague who’s eyeing a leadership role, and leave a review telling us the one leadership habit you’re working on next.

Ready to Rethink How Orthopaedic Leaders are Made? We sit down with Rex C. Haydon, MD, PhD, FAOA, archaeologist turned musculoskeletal oncologist and Second President‑Elect of the American Orthopaedic Association—to trace the ABC Traveling Fellowship from its post‑war roots to its modern role as a launchpad for mid‑career transformation. Across five to six weeks and multiple continents, the fellowship pairs deep academic exchange with the kind of shared experience that forges lifelong mentors, collaborators, and friends. From resourceful solutions in international settings to the power of hosting fellows and paying forward the mentorship you received, this episode makes a compelling case for leaving your comfort zone to grow your career, your community, and your impact.

Fracture fixed, problem solved? Not even close. Dr. Andrea Spiker sits down with two orthopedic leaders, Dr. Marc Swiontkowski and Dr. Kyle Jeray, who helped turn a quiet crisis—osteoporosis-related fractures—into a national movement that’s changing how surgeons practice, teach, and lead. You’ll hear the untold origin story of Own the Bone and why it succeeded where earlier efforts stalled: simple, reliable interventions, clear follow-up, and a registry that reveals what works. There’s a proven playbook, real people at the AOA ready to help, and shared best practices that make programs sustainable. Owning bone health is an act of professionalism and empathy—treating the person behind the fracture and preventing the next one. If you’ve wondered how to move from “bone broke, me fix” to truly comprehensive care, this conversation gives you the history, the tools, and the push to start today. Visit the JBJS Orthopaedic Forum to read Dr. Jeray’s presidential address: https://journals.lww.com/jbjsjournal/abstract/2025/11050/out_of_left_field__leadership_lessons_i_didn_t_see.18.aspx.

David Martin, MD, FAOA takes us on a profound exploration of orthopaedic board certification's past, present, and future landscape. As Executive Medical Director of the American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery (ABOS), Dr. Martin provides podcast host, Dr. Douglas Lundy, rare insights into how the certification process shapes both individual surgeons and the entire profession. Dr. Martin articulates a clear vision that balances competing priorities: "We need to increase the value of board certification and decrease the burden." This tension – maintaining rigorous standards while respecting surgeons' time constraints – drives the evolution of assessment methods. The podcast reveals how the ABOS approaches this challenge. Whether you're a medical student considering orthopaedics, a resident preparing for boards, or an experienced surgeon maintaining certification, this conversation offers valuable perspective on why rigorous professional standards matter – not just for career advancement, but for patient safety and the profession's continued autonomy. Subscribe now to hear more thought-provoking discussions about the future of orthopaedic surgery.

What if the biggest breakthroughs in joint care are stalled not by science, but by budgets? We sit down with Dr. Josh Jacobs to trace the future of orthopaedic research across funding realities, scientific frontiers, and the mission to keep surgeon scientists in the game. It’s a candid look at how NIH indirect cuts, DOD reductions, and shifting hospital margins collide with the urgent need to tackle periprosthetic joint infection, chronic pain, and the rising burden of osteoarthritis. Dr. Jacobs explains why NIAMS remains a vital engine for musculoskeletal research, how advocacy can reshape priorities, and why better grant quality—paired with clinically informed study sections—may be the fastest way to win a larger share of federal dollars.  If you care about the future of joint replacement, surgeon scientist careers, and truly personalized musculoskeletal care, this conversation connects the policy dots with the lab and the OR. Subscribe, share with a colleague who writes grants, and leave a review with your take on where orthopedic research dollars should go next.

What happens when a respected orthopaedic chair steps away from the big title to get back to the OR, residents, and real day-to-day impact? We sit down with Dr. Keith Kenter to unpack a rare leadership arc—building an academic culture in Kalamazoo, navigating post-COVID administrative sprawl, and ultimately returning to Missouri to reclaim core values: teaching, operating, and mentoring. It’s a candid look at ego, identity, and the quiet power of influence without authority. Dr. Kenter shares how he elevated scholarly activity, promoted faculty, and designed a longitudinal musculoskeletal education program, then watched his role expand across multiple surgical services until the clinical work he loved slipped out of reach. Family, foresight, and timing opened a door at Mizzou, where strong culture and deep bench strength offered collaboration, patient-first focus, and the daily satisfaction of training the next generation. If the story resonates, follow the show, share with a colleague, and leave a review with your biggest “leading up” takeaway. Your feedback helps more clinicians find conversations that move our profession forward.

Want to know why some orthopaedic practices deliver faster care at lower cost with happier patients? Doug Lundy, MD, MBA, FAOA sits down with Dr. Gerry Williams, FAOA to map the strategy behind ancillary ownership—and why control, not just margin, is the quiet superpower of modern MSK care.  The heart of the episode is surgical workflow. When surgeons lead ASCs, standardization and team expertise turn operating rooms into high-performance lines: quicker turnovers, fewer complications, and lower total cost of care. Dr. Williams explains he is bullish on private practice with scale: integrated MSK groups that know their costs, invest wisely, and keep access open by diversifying revenue.    If you care about the future of orthopaedic care—patient access, training integrity, ASC growth, and how to run a resilient practice—this conversation is a playbook. Subscribe, share with your team, and leave a review with the one change you’d make to your care model after hearing this.

Want a real look at how independent orthopaedic groups thrive while hospitals buy up urgent cares, primary care, and the referral rails? Dr. Doug Lundy, AOA host, sits down with Dr. Kimmerly, president at Peachtree Orthopedics in Atlanta, to unpack how a 44-physician practice stays nimble, patient-centered, and profitable in a market dominated by large systems and complex EHR ecosystems. The story isn’t about being the biggest—it’s about building a vertically integrated experience that moves patients from access to outcome with speed and clarity. If this resonated, follow the show, share it with a colleague who’s weighing independence vs employment, and leave a quick review with your biggest takeaway. Your feedback helps more surgeons find conversations that matter.

What if a health system could be massive and still feel local to every patient it serves? We sit down with Dr. MaCalus Hogan, chair of orthopedic surgery at UPMC, to unpack how a hybrid model—academic, community-employed, and private partners—can deliver scale without sameness. Dr. Hogan shares the leadership habits that shaped his path (mentorship, humility, listening first) and how those habits translate into practical decisions that align surgeons, hospitals, and health plans around value. We pull back the curtain on horizontal integration—building trust and shared standards across regions—before moving into vertical integration that connects financing, bundles, post-acute care, and data. Dr. Hogan explains how UPMC leveraged CJR-era lessons to create surgeon-built programs for quality and cost, mirrored within a 4M+ member health plan. Expect clear insights on center-of-excellence designations, optimizing post-acute spend, and the realities of TEAMS participation. We also dig into consolidation with eyes wide open: comparing contracts, unlocking economies of scale, and reinvesting savings into community access points like ambulatory surgery centers and subspecialty services where patients actually live. Looking 15–20 years ahead, Dr. Hogan argues the big will get bigger, but winners will collaborate, not copy-and-paste. Markets differ, payer mixes shift, and culture matters. The future favors systems that listen locally and act decisively—standardizing where it helps, flexing where it counts. If you care about orthopedic leadership, bundles, payer alignment, and how to grow without breaking what works, this conversation offers a grounded playbook. Enjoy the episode? Follow, share with a colleague, and leave a review with your biggest takeaway—what’s one integration move your market needs next?