A conversation with R. Shay Bess, MD

In this issue, Spine Surgery Today poses five questions to R. Shay Bess, MD. He is Chief of the Adult Spinal Deformity Service and Director of Spine Research for the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, and is an associate professor of Orthopaedic Surgery at NYU Langone Medical Center’s Hospital for Joint Diseases in New York.

Dr. Bess earned his medical degree from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore in 1999 and completed an orthopedic surgery residency at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine in Cleveland in 2004. He completed a fellowship in pediatric and adult spine and scoliosis surgery in 2005 at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

Dr. Bess received his board certification in orthopedic surgery from the American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery in 2007.

From 2005 to 2007, Dr. Bess was at the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at the University of Utah School of Medicine where he served as an assistant professor. From 2007 to 2008, he was a fellowship faculty members in pediatric and adult spinal surgery at the San Diego Center for Spinal Disorders in La Jolla, Calif.

From 2008 to 2015, Dr. Bess served as Director of the Pediatric Scoliosis Services at Rocky Mountain Hospital for Children/Presbyterian St. Luke’s Medical Center in Denver.

Dr. Bess is founder and president of the International Spine Study Group Foundation (ISSG). The non-profit research foundation has presented more than 700 abstracts and published more than 90 manuscripts since the foundation was formed in 2010, advancing research in adult spinal deformity.

Dr. Bess has more than 80 publications in peer-reviewed journal articles, has authored 15 book chapters, and has presented his work nationally and internationally at numerous medical conferences.

He also is a member of the Scoliosis Research Society and North American Spine Society, among other organizations.

Spine Surgery Today: What are your hobbies outside of practicing medicine?

R. Shay Bess, MD: Life outside of my clinical and research work is incredibly fulfilling, with my favorite hobbies including spending time with my family, playing with my 5-year-old son and exercising. I am fortunate to not only collaborate on spinal deformity research with my colleagues in the ISSG, but they are also some of my best friends in the world. We share great wine together and enjoy traveling and time together. I believe the people you choose as friends are reflective of who you are, and I have been blessed to have phenomenal friends and a wonderful family who make my life richer and worthwhile.

Spine Surgery Today: Who has had the greatest influence on your career?

Bess: Mentoring is a dynamic process, and I have had several great influences on my career, and that continues to this day. My first medical influence was, and still is, my father, Robert J. Bess, MD, who practices orthopedic surgery in Parker, Colo. I continue to seek him out for advice. He provides great perspective to my medical career and my life. He has always believed medicine is a wonderful field that is full of opportunity and those who practice medicine are fortunate. Importantly, my father has always encouraged me to remain above the fray, and never fall into the trap of negativity that can be pervasive in the medical field. The late Henry H. Bohlman, MD, who was at Case Western University School of Medicine, in Cleveland, influenced me going into spine — and also my interest in wine — and he drove home the importance of research for me. I was also lucky enough to train at Washington University with Lawrence G. Lenke, MD, Keith H. Bridwell, MD, and K. Daniel Riew, MD. They also reinforced the importance of conducting research and provided wonderful training. Behrooz A. Akbarnia, MD, was also a huge influence on my career, bringing me into the ISSG, as was Peter M. Newton, MD, who further expanded my efforts with the ISSG. All the members of the ISSG are phenomenal people and are close friends of mine. They bring me a tremendous amount of inspiration that provides continued mentorship, including my friends Frank J. Schwab, MD, Christopher I. Shaffrey, MD, and Douglas C. Burton, MD.

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Spine Surgery Today: What area of research in spine surgery most interests you right now? Why?

Bess: The research efforts from the ISSG are compelling and the work we are doing is innovative and diverse. We are currently studying why patients report pain and disability. We also are attempting to model why patients recover and explore from an interactive standpoint the dynamics of health-related quality of life metrics. We want to develop measures that can answer what patients want out of their treatment and then explore what drives patient satisfaction to improve outcomes. This research will not only improve patient care, but will carry economic benefits, determining what treatments are most cost-effective and sustainable for patients.

Spine Surgery Today: What advice would you offer a medical school student today?

Bess: I would tell a medical student what you are doing now is absolutely worth it. I would tell him or her to always be inspired, always stay positive and never fall into the trap of being a pessimist. Medicine is a great field that will provide you as much satisfaction and diversity as you put into it, through patient care, continued education, personal development and research.

Spine Surgery Today: What is up next for you?

Bess: Together with our efforts through the ISSG and at NYU Langone Medical Center, we are going to continue our research to assess why patients report what they do. Our goal is to improve patient outcomes and try to make a difference by improving patients’ lives. In conjunction with the wonderful work of the ISSG and through my new role as Chief of Adult Spinal Deformity service and Director of Spine Research at NYU Langone, we will integrate these efforts from “bench to beside” and translate our research into improved patient care for both the spine world and hopefully the greater medical field.

For more information:

R. Shay Bess, MD, can be reached at NYU Langone Medical Center, 301 E. 17th St., Suite 400, New York, NY 10003; email: shay.bess@nyumc.org.

Disclosure: Bess reports ISSG receives research support from DePuy Spine, Medtronic, Stryker, NuVasive, K2M, Zimmer Biomet and Innovasis.