Becker's connected with Jason Ko, MD, vice chair of clinical operations for the department of surgery at Northwestern Center for Hand Surgery in Chicago, to learn how he keeps his career as a physician fulfilling — despite any concerns he may have with the industry.
Note: This response has been edited lightly for length and clarity.
Question: Physicians are leaving the field for a number of reasons. Why are you staying?
Dr. Jason Ko: First off, I love what I do. I am the son of a surgeon, and I always knew that becoming a surgeon was my calling. At Northwestern Medicine and Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, I am in an ideal environment to stay committed to the tripartite mission of clinical excellence, research and education. As a plastic and reconstructive surgeon that does 100% reconstructive surgery, I come to work every day energized and excited for the impact my team and I can make in people's lives, and I feel well-supported by my colleagues, bosses and executive leadership. I have also been fortunate to play a leading role in groundbreaking clinical research focusing on advanced amputee care, bioprosthetics, and the reduction of nerve pain/phantom limb pain, which has been adopted all over the world and has been immensely satisfying for me professionally. From an education standpoint, I am also the program director for the plastic surgery residency, and it has been fun and invigorating to teach residents and medical students throughout my career — the two-way exchange of ideas that I engage in on a daily basis is important for someone like me who is always trying to learn and improve.
With that said, the U.S. healthcare landscape is ever-changing — and surgery is a physically demanding career — so I am mindful of my own career path and longevity. This is why I chose to get my MBA from Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management in 2019 so that I could gain more real-world knowledge and learn new skills that will help me as a leader as my career continues to grow and evolve. Over the past few years, I have been fortunate to take on more administrative and leadership roles within our health system, which have added new dimensions to my career beyond just being a surgeon. Northwestern Medicine is great at supporting physician leaders within the health system — our current CEO is a great example — and it has been exciting for me to step outside of my "silo" as a surgeon and learn more about the complexities of delivering high-quality healthcare while focusing on improving efficiency and the optimizing the clinical experience for our patients. All of these factors contribute to why I'm excited to come to work every day and don't foresee that changing anytime soon.