The Health series is presented by AdventHealth
What do mechanical engineering and orthopedic surgery have in common? For Dr. Thomas Hsing, MD, MBA, the two career paths share some striking similarities. Hsing worked as a mechanical engineer for ten years before leaving the field to pursue a career in medicine. “I began to desire a field that allowed me to make a direct impact on people’s lives,” he says. The AdventHealth-affiliated orthopedic surgeon often uses advanced robotic techniques, combining his technological expertise with a passion for patient care.
Starting a new career is never simple, but Hsing’s decision was driven by passion. “I shadowed a few different types of physicians before jumping in and making the switch,” he says. He found a home in orthopedic surgery, a department that uses implants and techniques familiar to him. “I saw that orthopedics incorporated what I loved about engineering into a field that brought a sense of societal impact.”
As an engineer, Hsing already possessed many qualities desirable in a surgeon—working in multidisciplinary teams, complex problem-solving, and understanding and applying principles of physics and properties of material. “Technology is always improving, and whether it is engineering or orthopedics, there’s always an opportunity to find cutting-edge ways of making the field better,” he says. One of those cutting-edge technologies is robotics—a tool he often uses in his practice.
“In a robotic knee procedure, optical arrays are placed on the femur and tibia (thigh and shin bones) to allow the surgeon to track that limb, and this is the basis for dynamic evaluation of the knee,” Hsing says. “Overall, robotics allows the surgeon to make more precise cuts.” Robotics is a growing field, according to Hsing, who has a long-standing interest in technology. “Technological advancements are becoming an increasingly integral part of our world to help us do things better. In training, one mentor described robotics in joint surgery as, ‘driving with GPS compared to using a paper map.’” At AdventHealth Shawnee Mission and AdventHealth South Overland Park, Hsing has access to the most advanced orthopedic robots so he can perform procedures with the highest precision.
Orthopedic surgery brings new fulfillment to Hsing, along with different challenges. “Being a surgeon is fulfilling in being able to impact lives positively. However, with that comes the pressure of making decisions that sometimes do not turn out as planned,” he says. “Another surprise is the constant balance of precision, which was paramount in engineering, with the speed that is required of a surgeon.” And though his time as an engineer was spent working with objective data, things as a surgeon are not always so cut and dried. “Robotics allows me to try to bridge the gap and obtain more objective data for decision-making,” he says. “If a knee is loose, I now have a number I can look at to tell me in millimeters exactly how loose.”
Hsing believes his previous career as a mechanical engineer helps him as a medical provider. “It does affect the way I approach problem-solving,” he says. “The saying ‘once an engineer, always an engineer’ is absolutely true. I always try to think of problems in a systematic fashion.” But his life experiences also grant him insight into his patients. “Knowing a life outside of medicine has allowed me to appreciate what it is like to not be ingrained in the medical world, and to be more humble.”