Toni M. McLaurin, MD

I had always planned to pursue a career in medicine, but I hadn’t considered specializing in orthopedic surgery until medical school. It happened to be my first surgical rotation, and I loved it.

Throughout my residency, I became more and more interested in orthopedic trauma—caring for people who had experienced severe injuries from car accidents, falls from heights, and other similarly traumatic events. Often, these people are living their normal lives until an accident suddenly, and very dramatically, changes everything. Through surgery, I can immediately help them, transforming what was once a life-altering injury back into a functioning limb.

As my career evolved further, I also became interested in posttraumatic reconstruction. In this subspecialty, I care for people experiencing chronic conditions. These may include fracture nonunion, which is when a broken bone hasn’t healed, or a fracture malunion, which is when the bone heals crookedly or incorrectly. I also treat people with osteomyelitis, which is when a bone becomes infected.

I have expertise in managing these chronic conditions using techniques such as circular ring external fixation, in which an external frame is placed on the patient’s leg to correct the bone, either by slowly realigning and straightening it, lengthening it, or both. During this process, the bone remains stabilized, allowing people to walk and continue their daily activities, while simultaneously correcting a chronic problem. People who have these long-term conditions are often unaware that they have treatment options. I find it very gratifying to be able to help them.

I also enjoy being able to teach reconstructive treatment procedures to orthopedic residents. I have been involved in resident education for my entire career, and I am the proud recipient of multiple Teacher of the Year awards at NYU Langone.

One of the best pieces of advice I can pass on to residents is to develop and maintain respectful and collaborative relationships with their patients. This helps patients feel more involved and in control of their treatment, which encourages them to participate more fully in all aspects of their recovery, ultimately improving their overall care.

Showing residents how to interact and build relationships is just as vital to their education as teaching them how to perform surgical procedures. After all, there is far more to surgery than being an expert in surgical technique.