Q&A: William Saar, D.O. (’96)

Orthopedic surgery

 When did you choose orthopedic surgery and why?

 I love mechanical things—I almost studied to became an engineer—and I love working with my hands. Also, with this field, you get to see outcomes pretty quickly. I appreciate that more exact nature of things. A lot of times with medicine you’re dealing with complicated chronic diseases that never really go away. Orthopedics is more straight-forward, and you’re often dealing with a younger population, so you can really focus in on a problem and solve it.

 What surprised you about orthopedic surgery?

It can be difficult, especially for a surgeon, to learn about the more personal side of medicine. As a surgeon, you’re so excited to get into the surgery room—to do the procedures—you forget that you have to deal with the patients after that. You have to realize that surgery is not just about surgery. You have to interact with patients and their families, and you need the right communications skills to do that. Surgery’s one thing, but what happens after that person wakes up also takes a lot of training.

 What do you find most challenging about being a doctor?

 Preparing for the business of medicine. There’s a lot about medicine that you don’t learn in the classroom. I’d tell students to take the initiative, ask questions during clinical rotations—not just, ‘How did you treat that disease?’ But also, ‘Why did you bill it that way?’ In medical school, you’re so overwhelmed with learning the medicine; you often don’t think to ask about this stuff.

 What’s it like returning to OU-COM?

 This is the first time I’ve been back since graduation. On seeing the river I remembered coming here for my first interview… I’ll admit, being from Cleveland, I was a little worried about coming to a small town in Southern Ohio. I was surprised though that I adjusted so quickly. OU-COM turned out to be a great fit.

 What’s your advice for students considering your field?

 It’s very competitive, so be prepared. Always have a plan B.