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St. Vincent Hospital
Orthopaedic Trauma Surgeon, Chief of Orthopaedics
SFU BPK Alumni
Organization

 

I grew up in Ottawa, and chose SFU due to the strong athletic and academic reputation. Growing up, I was involved heavily in paddling. SFU, with its proximity to Burnaby Lake, the opportunity to paddle year round, and the challenging academic program in Kinesiology seemed a perfect choice and I enrolled in 1989.

While at SFU, I had the opportunity to train at the National Canoe Team Training center at Burnaby Lake and to participate in 3 Olympic Games (88,92,96). My athletic career culminated with winning the 1991 World Championships in Kayak Singles. I also won 3 other World Championship Medals between 1987 and 1995.

After graduating from SFU in 1994, I was admitted to Harvard Medical School. I graduated from HMS in 1999 and went on to the Harvard Orthopaedic Surgery Residency at Mass General Hospital, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, and Boston Children’s Hospital, graduating in 2004. I decided on a career in Orthopaedic Trauma and completed a fellowship at the world renowned Shock Trauma Center in Baltimore Maryland in 2005.

Since graduating from my fellowship I have been living and working in Indianapolis, Indiana. Here I have had the opportunity to work at OrthoIndy, at a Level 1 trauma center. I served for 5 years as a member of the medical team for the Indianapolis 500, and IndyCar Series.  Additionally, I also hold several leadership positions as the Secretary of OrthoIndy and as the Chief of Orthopaedics at St. Vincent Hospital Indianapolis. I recently (2015) completed an MBA from the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University.

My wife Heather and I have 5 beautiful children and, surprisingly, thoroughly enjoy life in the Midwest of the United States!

QUESTIONS:

Why did you choose to go to SFU?   
It offered the opportunity to train at the National Canoe Team Training Center in Burnaby and  pursue a rigorous Kinesiology degree.

Where did you spend the most amount of time on campus?
The library. 

What is your favorite memory from your time at SFU?
My favorite memory was just how different the campus could look on any given day. It could go from gloomy and foggy to having the most beautiful views of the whole Lower Mainland and Pacific Range mountains!

Who was your favorite SFU professor and why?
Glen Tibbits, he taught me Physiology of the Heart and really kickstarted my interest in medicine.

How has your SFU degree impacted your career? 
When I started in medical school at Harvard, I was in classes with many of the best and brightest from around the world. Students who had undergrad and graduate degreees from places like Yale, Stanford, Brown – places I could have only dreamed of going. Yet, I quickly realized that my foundation of knowledge from SFU was as strong if not stronger than any of my classmates. I breezed through the first years of med school and this allowed me to really advance my learning during these early classes and really set me up well for the rest of medical school.

What is your favorite SFU snow story?
I had chains for my 1984 Honda Civic and often had to put them on just to get out of the parking lot and down the hill!  

If you could give advice to students today, what would you tell them?
Take advantage of the immense opportunities afforded to you at a place like SFU, there is no limit to where it might take you!

What is the one thing about SFU that must not change?
Commitment to diversity and academic flexibility.


This post was originally posted to the SFU BPK Alumni Page.