Dr. Kim Clabbers P’23 spoke to students on Friday, April 14, about her work as an orthopedic surgeon and the kinds of medical cases handled by orthopedists. Clabbers earned her MD from the University of Minnesota before completing her residency at University of Pennsylvania and fellowship at Temple University. She discussed the undergraduate requirements needed to apply to medical school and the process of becoming board-certified to practice medicine. 

Through a series of slides, Clabbers shared real X-rays of patients who needed orthopedic treatments including those with fractures, dislocated shoulders, and ACL tears. Through internal camera photos, she also explained the process of working on some of these treatments through surgeries and showed examples of pins, rods, and other hardware used. She compared images of healthy joints and those in people who need knee or hip replacements, giving numerous and varied real-life examples of the important work being done in orthopedic departments. While going through her slides of pictures, Clabbers also offered important advice to students interested in pursuing a career in medicine: “If you’re squeamish, orthopedics is not the specialty for you!”