Dr. Smith has been involved in humanitarian activities for the past 45 years and has completed approximately 30 medical mission trips during his career. He founded the orthopedic division of Operation Rainbow in 1990, which allowed him and a team of volunteers to provide free orthopedic and plastic surgical care to underserved populations. He continues to serve as the director of orthopedic surgery with the organization.
Most recently, Dr. Smith led two orthopedic surgical teams to Haiti to provide disaster relief after the earthquake in Jan. 2010. “The key to having successful missions, whether emergent or elective, is planning for and being able to do just about anything with which you are faced and knowing your limitations,” Dr. Smith said in the release. “It is the most rewarding thing you will ever do in the practice of medicine.”
Read the AAOS release on Dr. Taylor Smith.
Read other coverage on orthopedic surgeon leaders:
– AAOS Names New Leaders for 2011
– AAOS President Dr. Daniel Berry: 4 Thoughts on the Future
