AAOS Now Podcast

Welcome to the new AAOS Now podcast — part of The Bone Beat Orthopaedic Podcast Channel. Each episode offers expert insight and advice to help orthopaedic surgeons stay informed, enhance their practices, and provide the best possible care for their patients. The AAOS Advocacy Podcast has wrapped, but you can still listen to or download past episodes here. The AAOS Now Podcast will also cover orthopaedic advocacy topics in upcoming episodes. Brought to you by the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons and the American Association of Orthopaedic Surgeons.

  1. 2 DAYS AGO

    My Parents Survived the Khmer Rouge: Life Lessons

    In this deeply personal episode, Bopha Chrea, MD, shares the extraordinary story of her family's survival of Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge regime in Cambodia, their harrowing escape from the Killing Fields across the border into Thailand, and their eventual resettlement in Canada. Dr. Chrea, now a foot and ankle surgeon at Iowa Health Care, connects her family's journey to three core lessons she carried into her career: that opportunities are often disguised as misfortune, that growth requires getting comfortable with being uncomfortable, and that gratitude is a genuine superpower. She reflects on how her early experiences navigating the healthcare system as a young child of immigrant parents shaped her path to orthopaedics, and how she now uses those lessons to guide trainees through the challenges of residency and fellowship, as well as the transition into practice. Key Topics Covered in This Episode Opportunities can be disguised as misfortune — How a series of trials and tribulations, including losing his glasses and the destruction of his family’s home, miraculously ended up saving Dr. Chrea's father from execution by Pol Pot’s brutal regime. The lesson: tragedy can lead to positive outcomes and growth. It’s important to get comfortable with being uncomfortable — How her parents’ willingness to take risks in the absence of a guaranteed path enabled the family to escape the Killing Fields and safely reach the refugee camp in Thailand, where Dr. Chrea was born. This lesson: focus on clarity of vision over certainty of path; as long as you believe in the vision, you can navigate through the uncertainty, but if you aren’t willing to try, you definitely won’t succeed. Gratitude is a superpower — How her brother chooses to emphasize the positive aspects of the family’s time in the refugee camp, not just the horrors. The lesson: mindset matters; you can actively choose to frame experiences in a more affirming way. To this day, Dr. Chrea is intentional about expressing gratitude to the people who have supported her journey. Mentoring is not one-size-fits-all — How meeting learners where they are helps them build confidence through small, achievable goals. The path to orthopaedics is paved with personal experiences — How translating for her mother at medical appointments as a child sparked a lifelong commitment to providing compassionate, patient-centered care. Guest: Bopha Chrea, MD, Assistant Professor of Orthopaedics and Rehabilitation in the Carver College of Medicine at the University of Iowa Host: Robert M. Orfaly, MD, MBA, FAAOS, AAOS Now editorial board member

    21 min
  2. 17 MAR

    The AAOS Patient Engagement Task Force

    This episode spotlights the AAOS Patient Engagement Task Force and its efforts to increase patient involvement in and education about orthopaedic care. Host Stuart J. Fischer, MD, FAAOS, welcomed task force co-chairs James W. Barber, MD, FAAOS, and Monica Payares-Lizano, MD, FAAOS, to discuss the creation and structure of the task force and its focus on patient engagement as a key part of the 2024-28 strategic plan. They explain that the task force was designed to promote bi-directional communication between the AAOS Board of Directors and the AAOS councils and committees that are already involved in patient-facing work.  Highlighted task force accomplishments include a major revamp of OrthoInfo.org – AAOS’ most comprehensive patient-facing musculoskeletal health resource – to make the website more accessible and easier to navigate, as well as provide the content in multiple languages. Drs. Barber and Payares also talked about patient advocacy and the powerful impact of sharing patient stories with policymakers on Capitol Hill, about other AAOS patient education tools such as CPGs, and about the positive effect of patient engagement on PROMs. Both doctors share perspectives about how they are able to effectively inform and communicate with their unique patient populations, emphasizing the importance of placing patients at the center of orthopaedic care. Host: Stuart J. Fischer, MD, FAAOS, member, AAOS Now Editorial Board, and former Editor-in-Chief of OrthoInfo Guests: Monica Payares-Lizano, MD, FAAOS, pediatric orthopaedic surgeon at Phoenix Children’s; Member-at-Large, AAOS Board of Directors; co-chair, Patient Engagement Task Force James W. Barber, MD, FAAOS, orthopaedic surgeon with Southeastern Orthopaedics and Surgery Center; Secretary, AAOS Board of Councilors; co-chair, Patient Engagement Task Force

    28 min
  3. 19/12/2025

    Innovation in Orthopaedic Surgery

    This episode explores the multifaceted nature of innovation in orthopedic surgery, from creative problem-solving in clinical practice to collaborating with industry on new device development. Dr. Robert Orfaly hosts a conversation with Dr. Amy Ladd, Chief of Stanford's Chase Hand & Upper Limb Center, a recognized leader in the field whose career includes pioneering research in thumb CMC arthritis, patents, and instrument design. Dr. Amy Ladd shares her perspective on fostering intellectual curiosity early in one's career, the process of turning a simple idea into intellectual property, and the evolving relationship between academic institutions, industry, and orthopedic surgeons. Practical advice is given for trainees, mid-career surgeons, and anyone inspired to pursue innovation, with stories ranging from creating specialized surgical instruments to applying motion analysis technology from upper limb research to optimizing golf swings. The episode also discusses the importance of networking across disciplines and the realities of developing and commercializing new medical devices, emphasizing that creativity and collaboration are central to advancing patient care. Host: Robert Orfaly, MD, MBA, FAAOS, Editor in Chief, AAOS Now  Guest: Amy Ladd, MD, FAAOS, Chief of Stanford's Chase Hand & Upper Limb Center; Chief of the Children’s Hand Clinic at Lucile Salter Packard Children’s Hospital at Stanfordand; and the Elsbach-Richards Professor of Surgery and Professor, by courtesy, of Medicine (Immunology & Rheumatology) and Surgery (Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery), at Stanford University Medical Center Production and Editing: MK Quinn Media

    29 min

About

Welcome to the new AAOS Now podcast — part of The Bone Beat Orthopaedic Podcast Channel. Each episode offers expert insight and advice to help orthopaedic surgeons stay informed, enhance their practices, and provide the best possible care for their patients. The AAOS Advocacy Podcast has wrapped, but you can still listen to or download past episodes here. The AAOS Now Podcast will also cover orthopaedic advocacy topics in upcoming episodes. Brought to you by the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons and the American Association of Orthopaedic Surgeons.

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