He has treated at least one film legend and more than a few of his patients have stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame…but you will never hear him talk about those patients. “For me, every patient deserves the respect of my time and attention. It shouldn’t be any other way,” says Neel Anand, M.D.
And yet, at the Academy Awards (film, not AAOS) a couple years back, one of the winners specifically called out, from the podium, to Dr. Neel Anand saying that he was the reason they were able to get back to work and, ultimately, win the Oscar.
It’s been a long, incredible journey for this humble, remarkable man from India.
Years ago, time and attention were what the unpretentious Dr. Anand sorely needed from the orthopedic training world. He came to the United States as a foreign medical graduate in 1993 and was immediately at a disadvantage. This was not going to stop him. This gentleman, who applied to over 135 residency programs and received 135 “we regret to inform you” letters, is now Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery and Director of Spine Trauma at the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles.
Training on 200 Patients per Day
“Growing up in India, I didn’t have ready access to many things, thus I had to use my ingenuity. In several aspects of my life, I had to find faster and better ways of doing things. Functioning like this basically became second nature.”
Driven by an interest in biology, a young Neel Anand attended college, medical school, and residency in India. “I was always intrigued by the process of building things…Legos, cranes, etc., orthopedics was a natural fit.”
As for why he zeroed in on spine, he says, “It made me feel like a real doctor. With hip, knee, etc., there is not a wide diagnostic range. Complex spine issues, however, involve deciding on a diagnosis, planning for treatment, and very interesting surgeries.”
Describing his (first) orthopedic residency—in India, Dr. Anand recalls how different it was from his experience in the United States. For example, Dr. Anand recalls, “There were few limitations as to work hours. We met with roughly 200 patients and did 10-20 cases daily. I was heavily influenced by Professor D.D. Tanna, an orthopedic spine surgeon who demanded excellence at every level. I was indoctrinated to believe that when you set your mind to something, nothing is impossible. And in stark contrast to training here in the U.S., we residents had complete responsibility for patients—we ran the program.”
In 1989, Dr. Anand, who would go on to train on three continents and at six universities, received a scholarship to the Royal College of Surgeons of England, enrolling in the University of Liverpool and earning a master’s degree in orthopedics. There, he was awarded a gold medal for clinical distinction.
I am probably one of those first patients. to have the non invasive surgery done by Dr. Anand sometime around 2003 or 2004. I recently had additional back surgery. Both were very successful. Dr Anand is very caring and kind. I always feel I am in good hands with him. My husband experienced some difficulty plus weakness in his legs so he saw his primary Dr., then saw a local orthopedic Dr. Who said he couldn’t see what was causing it. So we went to Dr.Anand and he said you have things wrong in your lower spine and in your neck, but you have no pain therefore I do not think you need surgery. Then he said you need to see a neurologist. How correct he was because my husband was subsequently diagnosed with ALS. How thankful we were that he did not have to have any unnecessary surgery which does happen to people who have unidentifiable ALS in the early stages. I am forever thankful to Dr. Anand.