Casey Jo Humbyrd, MD, MBE, is Chief of the Penn Orthopaedics Foot and Ankle Division. Dr. Humbyrd specializes in complex foot and ankle reconstructions, including total ankle replacements, as well as complex sports injuries, deformities, and arthritis. She sees patients at Pennsylvania Hospital, Penn Medicine University City, and Penn Medicine Radnor.
What conditions do you treat at Penn Medicine?
I treat all conditions of the foot and ankle, particularly those that require surgery. I mostly enjoy taking care of athletes and patients with complex foot and ankle arthritis and deformities.
What is the most exciting thing about being a part of the Penn Orthopaedics team?
As a University of Pennsylvania alumnus, I love getting to take care of Penn athletes and get my patients back in the game. There is nothing better than seeing someone who was injured on crutches get to return to playing the sport they love.
What is your philosophy on patient care?
Patient care is all about the patient-physician relationship. If I don't know what the patient prioritizes, I won't know how to best help and support them in their goals. I try to always be the physician I would want to see as a patient.
What kinds of research are you involved in at Penn and what does that mean for patients?
The majority of my research focuses on surgical ethics and health policy. While this has little direct impact on any individual patient, I hope that by working to advance our healthcare system, I am supporting better care for all patients.
I also collaborate with Dr. Josh Baxter on his work focusing on gait and Achilles tendon function. We are working to bring this work to day-to-day practice by using wearable sensors to improve the pre- and post-operative rehabilitation of our patients.
What do you enjoy doing outside of practicing medicine?
My family is my primary extracurricular activity. We love to travel, play sports, take long walks and hikes, and read.