SAN ANTONIO – Dr. Zachary Child is an orthopaedic spine surgeon for the University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio, whose skill set goes beyond the operating room.
Outside of work, you can often find him fixing up a vintage motorcycle, painting or traveling with his wife and daughter in their refurbished trailer.
"If you look at a lot of the things we've surrounded ourselves with -- a 100-year-old house with a lot of problems, a love of old cars, this old trailer we have now -- we've felt a lot of value in saving these things from passing into history," Child said.
Child described himself as very hands-on with restoration, and went into medicine to join together all parts of his life.
"Orthopaedics was really that opportunity to join my hands and that feeling of craftsmanship with my love of taking care of people," he said.
Child said he sees some of the worst spinal patients in his operating room at University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio, patients that have sometimes been evaluated and rejected by other doctors.
"There are patients out there (who) badly need a champion, or badly need someone to be in their corner ... and that's what the University is there for," he said.
For more information on Dr. Child and the University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio, call 210-450-9000, or visit them online at www.UTMedicine.com.