All you need to know about Orthopaedics

Medical aspirants planning to specialise as an Orthopaedist have to either pursue a Diploma in Orthopaedics (DO), a Diploma of National Board of Examination (DNB Ortho) or Master of Surgery in Orthopaedics.

Orthopaedics is a branch of medical science that deals with the injuries and treatment of the musculoskeletal system. Doctors in this field are called orthopaedists and offer treatment to patients suffering from pain in joints, spine, sports injury, congenital disorders, fractures, arthritis, osteoporosis, musculoskeletal trauma, etc. Besides, they handle cases of degenerative joint disease, cerebral palsy, and muscular dystrophy. Orthopaedists are proficient in carrying out both surgical and non-surgical procedures of treatment.

Skills required to be a successful Orthopaedist

In-depth knowledge of the subject and practical experience are the foremost skills required to be a successful orthopaedist. Some of the vital skills required to be a successful orthopaedist are:

Perseverance and endurance	Must possess immense tolerance to spend time with the patients and carry out prolonged surgical procedures
Critical thinking and problem-solving skills	Ability to think deeply and apply remedial measures judging the severity of the case
Diagnosis skills	Must have clinical eyes to diagnose a case and carry on with the treatment immediately
Communication skill	Ability to explain the disease and treatment procedure to the patients and their families
Interpersonal skill	Should have the power to build a relationship with the patients and build their trust
Use of modern treatment technique	Must be aware of the modern treatment procedures and able to use modern surgical tools

Eligibility Criteria to Pursue Orthopaedics

Medical aspirants planning to become an orthopaedist can pursue Diploma in Orthopaedics (DO), Diploma of National Board of Examination (DNB Ortho) or MS in Orthopaedics. However, to pursue any of these courses, the candidates are needed to complete Bachelor of Medicine Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) along with one and a half year of internship from a recognised university. To secure a berth in any of the medical colleges of the country, they would have to sit for the national level entrance test National Eligibility cum Entrance Test Post-Graduation (NEET PG). 

The admission in all the medical colleges is strictly based on merit.

Orthopaedics Course Content

All the postgraduate programmes in orthopaedics are structured to provide in-depth theoretical knowledge and hands-on training to the candidates. They are taught and trained to treat the dislocations and fractures of bone, tendon and ligament injuries, pulled muscles, arthritis and osteoporosis, Bone tumours, club foot and unequal leg lengths, disorders of joints, muscles, ligaments, tendons, nerves, and skin and spinal injuries. They also acquire knowledge the read and diagnose the problem from the imaging reports such as X-Ray and MRI.

Syllabus of Diploma in Orthopaedics

First Year	Second Year
Anatomy	Pathology
Biomechanics	Mechanical Operation
Mechanics	Functional Anatomy
Mathematics	Clinics
General Health Education	Workshop Management
General Mechanical Skill	Clinical Practice

Syllabus of MS in Orthopaedics

General Orthopaedics	Traumatology
Infections	Fractures and Dislocations
Tumours	Regional Orthopaedics
Congenital Anomalies	Spine
Peripheral Nerve Injuries	Sports Medicine
Microsurgery	The Hand
Imaging in Orthopaedics	Foot and Ankle
Non-traumatic Disorders	Arthroplasty
Operative Orthopaedics	Amputation
Arthrodesis	To clinically diagnose, assess, investigate and initially manage all surgical and medical emergencies
Closed Reduction of Fractures and Dislocations	To learn to assess ABC and perform CPR
Mastering Plastering Technique	Splintage of the spine and limbs for fracture-dislocations
Debridement of Open Fractures	To learn the use of certain emergency drugs – adrenaline, atropine, dopamine, Steroids, analgesics etc.
External Fixator application	Biopsies
Internal Fixation of minor fractures with K-wires
Excision of benign lesions
Tendon lengthening
Incision and drainage, acute Osteomyelitis/ Septic Arthritis
Skull tongs application

Job and Career Opportunities in Orthopaedics

After the completion of the postgraduate programme in Orthopaedics, they may join the government hospitals, private hospitals and super-specialty clinics, nursing homes, rehabilitation centres, and health centres to begin practice. They may also sit for Combined Medical Service examination conducted by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) and accept jobs in hospitals and rehabilitation centres of Armed Forces. With years, they will accumulate experience and may begin private practice and set up their own clinics. Besides, those who take an interest in teaching may join medical colleges as professors or can venture into research and become thesis guides to the senior residents at hospitals.

Salary of an Orthopaedist

After years of putting hard toil, maintaining rigorous schedule, discipline and extreme dedication, an orthopaedist starts reaping benefits when he begins professional practice. His earning depends upon his skill, experience, attitude, sincerity and behaviour. Like, any other profession, his income remains low at the initial days of his career. But it increases with years of practice in the field, as he acquires experience and reputation for himself. In government hospitals, the pay scale of an orthopaedist is decided by the department of health of the government. While deciding the pay scale, the recruiters always consider the experience, skill, academic excellence of the orthopaedist. Below is a table, which provides some idea about the pay scale of an orthopaedist.

Years of Experience	Average Salary (in Rs LPA)
0-5 Years	3-5
5-10 Years	8-12
More than 10 years	15-20

Top Recruiters of Orthopaedists

Apart from government hospitals, there are numerous private hospitals and super-specialty clinics in the country. All of them are equipped with state of the art facilities and infrastructure and provide excellent treatment. Therefore, the top recruiters of orthopaedists are Apollo Healthcare, Jaypee Healthcare, Max Healthcare, are Fortis Medicare etc.