What Brought Me to Healthcare & Why I’m Here to Stay

I’ve wanted to do work that positively impacts people – and society as a whole – since I was young. It’s fitting, then, that I found my niche in healthcare, though I didn’t always expect to end up in the field. As Company Group Chairman at DePuy Synthes, I’m fortunate to work with teams that do everything from developing devices for orthopaedic trauma patients to creating solutions for spinal injuries to helping treat osteoarthritis patients, among others. As a company, we’re united by our shared daily vision: Keep People Moving.

I grew up surrounded by healthcare. When I was a child, my mother was a nurse and my father was a doctor. Later in life, he transitioned to the corporate side of medicine. We moved around frequently, often to places where care was needed most. From Kenya and other developing countries to Canada, Latin America and Europe – I witnessed firsthand the worldwide importance of quality, accessible medicine, as well as the differing needs people have from country to country.

These experiences sparked a desire in me to help meet those needs, but not in the way you might expect. I wanted to pursue economics and international relations, as the first step to a career advancing opportunities for economic development. This all changed, however, after a personal event that impacted my brother redirected me back to my roots in the world of medicine.

Once I knew the path I was going to take, I got my start as a medical device product specialist in Switzerland – the beginning of a winding, but rewarding, road around the globe in the sales, marketing and management of joint reconstruction, trauma, spinal optical and ophthalmic devices. At all stages of my career journey, the greatest reward has been the chance to help those closest to me. For example, I worked on an oncology implant that helped my uncle buy more priceless time with his family and friends before losing his battle with cancer. I also helped develop a device that would later be used to treat my own wife’s spinal issue. During her operation, it gave me great confidence to understand exactly how the doctors were treating her ailment – and great relief to know that device would help her recover her mobility and lessen her pain.

In 2006, that road took me to Johnson & Johnson, a company that drew me in and has kept me with its culture, philosophy and commitment to putting those we serve first.

Throughout my career, each new role reinforced the reason I chose to enter healthcare in the first place – to have a positive impact on people’s lives. In orthopaedics, we have the ability to improve the quality of life for people around the world. We have the power to restore movement that was lost through a spinal injury, sports accident or other traumatic incident… And in the process, we return to patients a part of their freedom to enjoy life.

These experiences and many more like them have only strengthened my passion for healthcare and reinforced my commitment to making our industry the best it can be. Today we have a greater opportunity than ever before to transform healthcare for the better. New technologies such as 3D printing, Robotics and Artificial Intelligence will allow for quicker development of medical devices and greater precision in understanding patients’ clinical needs. What’s more, they help us do a better job of turning data into insights at all stages of care and, in the process, make us more patient-centric across every medical field.

The potential is exciting. As humans live longer, technology will bring unprecedented possibilities for improving care and enhancing the quality of life. It’s up to us to ensure that we extend these capabilities around the world and ensure that these new types of treatment are accessible to anyone in need.

I’ve always believed that if we throw all our passions into doing good things, more often than not, good things will happen. We in this industry are blessed to be able to do just that. I’m thankful for every job, every milestone and every experience that has brought me to healthcare and that keeps me in this amazing field in which every day brings a new opportunity to do good and transform lives.