Hi, so it's a pleasure to introduce this distinguished featured lecture by Steve Burkhart. So I've been around Anne a long time and it helps us be better creative artists and craftsmen. As we heard from Tony Gallagher this morning, we're all striving to be experts on the learning curve and maybe reach that expert peak. So I first met Steve Burkhart in 1984 at a San Diego shoulder meeting, just after he entered practice in San Antonio as a shoulder and elbow surgeon. And on many occasions I've observed Steve in his operating room, watching his skills during surgery. And then he was nice enough to invite me for dinner, Nora always made a nice dinner. But after evening dinner, I just like to sleep. So while I'm sleeping, Steve uses his mechanical engineering mind to develop 39 instrument patents, write 175 articles, and give us three editions of his cowboy surgery book. So now a golf analogy. So surgeons like golfers, we have a selection of tools in our bag. But as many of you know, I play golf poorly, despite custom clubs, lessons, and practice. So one day a golf friend said to me, Jimmy, there's two things attached to the golf club. One is the tool, the club face, and the other is your hand, and you're not Tiger. So I'm grateful to introduce my friend Steve, who's a talented craftsman, and he's asking me and you to look at our burden and our responsibility as creative arthroscopic surgeons. So Steve, take it away.

Steve Burkhart

shoulder and elbow surgeon

surgical skills

instrument patents

cowboy surgery