The AAMC team recently sat down with Dr. Pappas to learn more about his work. He operates his own private practice and uses social media to educate his audience on orthopedic surgery. Learn more about Dr. Pappas and his specialty below.
What attracted you to orthopedic surgery?
My grandfather and father were both doctors, so I grew up surrounded by medicine. I also played sports growing up and regularly visited the orthopedic surgeon for sports-related injuries. My frequent visits to the orthopedic surgeon helped me realize I liked the atmosphere of orthopedics, specifically how they worked with not only athletes but also regular people and got them back from injury. In medical school, I was initially interested in internal medicine but became more drawn to the action of the operating room as time went on. I especially enjoyed my rotation in orthopedic surgery, which led me to pursue it as my specialty.
Can you describe a typical workday?
On a typical clinic day, I start at 8:30 a.m. and see about 20 to 30 patients. I’ll see a patient every 15 minutes so that I can give each person my full attention when I visit them. I finish seeing patients at 4 p.m. and start working on billing, dictations, calling back patients, and contacting insurance companies. I try to get home by 5 or 6 p.m. and do something for myself, like going to the gym or being with my family. If I am taking calls, I sometimes have to go to the ER after-hours to perform surgeries that need my immediate attention.
On an operating room day, surgeries usually begin at 7:30 a.m. I’ll perform between five and 10 surgeries in a day due to hand surgeries taking shorter amounts of time on average. I normally finish my day at 3 p.m.
What’s something that would surprise people about your day-to-day?
A lot of my time is spent doing clerical work in front of a computer, like typing patient notes, working on billing, coding, and filling out documentation before and after procedures. AI scribes have helped reduce some of this burden, but it is still almost one-third of my day. A lot of my social media work is dedicated to educating other doctors how they can use AI to decrease the amount of time spent doing clerical work. I advocate for physicians spending most of their time taking care of people rather than filling out paperwork. I think this is something both doctors and patients can agree upon.
What parts of your job do you find most challenging? What parts do you find most rewarding?
The most challenging part of my job is doing the tasks that are non-patient related care, like getting pre-approvals for surgeries, dealing with billing issues, and having to talk with insurance companies if my patients’ treatments get denied.
The most rewarding part is getting the satisfaction of knowing I’m helping people. Being able to diagnose a condition, treat that condition, and then see a patient doing well is what I love most about my job.
What previous experiences have helped you most as an orthopedic surgeon?
Growing up and regularly visiting the orthopedic surgeon for various sports-related injuries helped me to realize that I would be a good fit in this specialty. I got to know a few orthopedic surgeons personally. Orthopedic surgeons are generally happy with their career choice. I thought orthopedic surgery would be a great choice for me.
What’s one thing you wish you would’ve known before going into orthopedic surgery?
When you’re on call in orthopedic surgery, especially as a resident, you’re constantly on the go. Whether that be realigning a fracture, putting a cast on, or cleaning out an infection, this specialty is labor intensive. To excel in this field, you need a never-give-up attitude because there will be times when you feel like the day will never end.
How would you describe someone who could excel as an orthopedic surgeon?
To excel in this specialty, being a hard worker is the most important trait you can possess. Residency can be challenging, and you always have to try your very best to ensure appropriate care for your patients.
Working well with others is also important in orthopedics. Teamwork is paramount. Playing sports growing up really helped me to acclimate to the teamwork aspect of this field. There will be times you have to rely on residents and other surgeons to help you in urgent situations, and at other times they will rely on you. Try your best to be easy to work with; it will lead to better patient care in the long run.
To learn more about Dr. Pappas and his work, you can follow him on Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, and Facebook.