Mobility. So much of who we are is based on this concept of “mobility.” As Harry Chapin sang in his famous song “Taxi, ”
“You see, she was gonna be an actress
And I was gonna learn to fly
She took off to find the footlights
And I took off for the sky
Here, she’s acting happy
And here, she’s acting happy
Inside her handsome home
And me, I’m flying in my taxi”
As a medical student Dr. Charles Epps earned money for tuition, meals, and rent by driving a taxi. Years later, having risen to the heights of his profession as an acclaimed Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery at Howard University, Washington, D.C., and having defined what upward mobility is possible for a bright, hard working African American, Dr. Epps was back behind the wheel ferrying his charges to their destination—although this time it is his children and he’s a carpool volunteer.
Living a life of mobility and in a most inspirational way, providing it to children and adults would ultimately define one of the most amazing careers in orthopedics.
While most people would focus on Dr. Epps’ remarkable career of forward motion, he himself points to other events in his life. “My most significant accomplishment has been the recognition by my peers. I was very proud to be elected president of the Washington Orthopedic Society, and I was especially pleased to be the first African American named as president of the American Orthopaedic Association (AOA). In my national and international travels for the AOA I made sure to conduct myself with the utmost propriety so that no one would have concerns about having another African American president going forward.”
Dr. Epps is the founder and chief of the region’s only free, multidisciplinary crippled children’s program for limb-deficient children. Dr. Epps helped parents move through the grieving process and aided them in managing the complex emotions that emerge when you learn your child is disabled. “Working with these families was an extremely gratifying experience. The patients felt different because of limb loss, so of course they needed a kind heart in addition to skilled hands. But the parents suffered as well, and often had significant feelings of guilt to contend with when they saw that their baby was born with only a portion of an arm or a leg, or at worst, with all four limbs missing. They would search their mind for something they might have done or not done during the pregnancy, i.e., ‘I didn’t take my vitamins/eat properly, etc.’ It was heart wrenching, but fortunately, there were many times when we were able to help parents reduce the feelings of responsibility.”
Dr. Epps, who was president of the Association of Children’s Prosthetic-Orthotic Clinics, has personally cared for more than 1, 000 limb deficient children. “Forty years ago we had such limited information on how to treat these children…now things have improved substantially and the kids can go on to lead rewarding lives. In most cases, we provided the limbs because many of these families were very poor.”
God Doesn’t Make Mistakes
Guiding families through the process of understanding and accepting a child with limb deformities has been one of Dr. Epps most challenging experiences. “I had worked with many limb deficient children, and I saw a great need in the community. Often, the first orthopedist who was called when a child was born without a limb had never had experience taking care of such a child or interacting with their families. Pediatricians and hospitals started calling me on these occasions and I began going in to talk with the parents (and in some cases the grandparents). I tried to make this traumatic event somewhat less stressful for them; I would invite them to come to my clinic and meet other children and families in similar situations, something that seemed to provide them with great relief. The Howard residents rotated through our clinic and would sit beside me as I tried to comfort and educate the parents.”
“On one occasion the mother of a family that had a limb deficient child called the social worker and said, ‘I don’t know what to do. My older kids are refusing to go to Sunday school because they don’t understand how God could make their brother have only one arm.’ I told them to tell the kids that God made this baby and he is perfect exactly how he is.”
But, as Dr. Epps realized, to bring mobility to those who were born without a limb it also required governmental attention to their mobility needs. Dr. Epps revved his engines. “Years ago I testified before the D.C. City Council and the U.S. Congress to advocate for the establishment of a rehabilitation hospital in Washington, D.C. At the time, there was no hospital in the area that even had a ward dedicated to rehabilitation, so it wasn’t too difficult to make the case for the new facility. We convinced the powers that be to ‘get on board’ with the National Rehabilitation Hospital, and obtained the necessary certificate and funding to go forward. I stayed on the board for more than 10 years…rehabilitation is a natural part of orthopedics, but that is not always recognized.”
As the first African American oral examiner for the American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery, Dr. Epps found that he enjoyed the process and, of course, managed to alter some things along the way. “Every year I would propose one or two other African Americans for the position of oral examiner. What I enjoyed most was that while in the beginning each examiner brought their own cases, later on things were standardized and thus much fairer. I often ran into residents years later at meetings and I was always pleased that they felt I had treated them fairly.”
Dr. Epps and his chosen profession have come a long, long way over the past decades. Looking forward and considering the trajectory of orthopedics, Dr. Epps thinks that prejudice, while still in existence, may be sharing space with the reality of ‘the market.’ “While I would hope that African American orthopedists would not be considered unique, I don’t think that will come about anytime soon. Years ago the challenge was for minority trainees to be accorded the same opportunities as their Caucasian peers; at that point in time, ‘white’ schools accepted a token African American or two. Now, the issue is largely one of availability. There are so few residency slots available that things are more competitive than ever.”
Aside from what he says made him such a paragon of mobility, namely, hard work, Dr. Epps says that orthopedists coming up through the ranks should always do something else: keep meticulous records. “You must always be honest and thorough with regard to notes, especially in the increasingly common personal injury cases where some parties are less concerned about facts than they should be. And there are those workers compensation cases where some patients don’t really want to work. You must adhere to the truth…you can’t change the facts or tilt them in any manner. Just call it as you see it.”
Citing an extreme example, Dr. Epps notes, “I once told a patient that I thought she was ready to return to work and she replied, ‘Oh no, doctor, this is a workers compensation case. I am entitled to six weeks of sick leave.’ I said, ‘But your injury only took two weeks to heal. Sorry, but I am writing a letter to your employer.’ I later learned that she was furious with me, and was quite emotionally unstable. At one point she said, ‘You can’t do this to me. I know where you live and I’m going to throw a Molotov cocktail through your window.’ I reported her threats and she was soon arrested. Fortunately, such situations are rare.”
Counterbalancing the stress of these situations is the serene home life Dr. Epps has created with his wife. “I met my wife—a pediatrician—in college and she and I attended medical school together. In our early family years I would spend as much time with our four children as possible, managing to eat breakfast with them nearly every morning and driving carpools. They are now well adjusted adults; three of the kids became physicians and one evolved into a computer engineer. We often gather the entire family—including our four grandchildren—at our home in Florida. I also volunteer with the Washington, D.C. Habitat for Humanity, an extremely rewarding endeavor.”
Dr. Charles Epps…for whom mobility became a calling and a dream come true.
