James L. Chappuis, MD, FACS, is a pioneering spine surgeon who has dedicated his career to improving patient care and outcomes. About 30+ years ago, he embarked on a journey focusing exclusively on spine surgery. In 1991, he founded Spine Center & Orthopaedics Atlanta, creating a comprehensive facility that brings together various aspects of spine surgery and care under one roof. Dr. Chappuis has shown that compassion and dedication can lead to transformative achievement in healthcare.
If one had to describe Dr. Chappuis in a word, it would be compassionate. His personal goal is to maintain harmony, motivation, and compassion. “For myself, for those around me, and for my patients.”
Following the Passion
During his college days, Dr. Chappuis was passionate about a lot of different things. He also knew that he could do well in various things. But, when he thought about, “how can I best utilize the gifts that God has given me?” he decided to pursue medicine. “It seemed to me that medicine would be the best way to take these gifts and utilize them,” Dr. Chappuis says.
Along the way, he has developed a number of patents, and he continues to be interested in biomechanics and art. “But I think my main passion since college has always been to get into medicine and help patients,” Dr. Chappuis says.
For him, success is about finding the passion, given to him, and using it to go forward and help make the world a better place. “For me, that was surgery,” he says. His definition of success has evolved, but once he found his passion, he wanted to develop it and make an impact. “That’s how I started Spine Center Atlanta,” Dr. Chappuis says. “I said, well, this is the gift that’s been given to me.”
Dr. Chappuis completed college in three years, medical school in three years, and then went straight into a surgical internship, residency, and practice. “So, from high school onward, I’ve been on this path to where I am today,” he says. “I haven’t done anything else.”
In 1987, he joined an Atlanta-based general orthopedic group called North Cobb Orthopedics. After four years, Dr. Chappuis left it to start Spine Center Atlanta in 1991. “I’ve been involved with it ever since,” he says.
Founding Spine Center Atlanta
Following his AO Spine Fellowship from Germany, Dr. Chappuis wanted to focus more on the spine. At the time, he was doing a lot of general orthopedic night calls and that was not really what he wanted to do.
He also noted that his practice patients had to visit different places for different things, such as MRI, physical therapy, or EMGs. “I thought, ‘Wouldn’t that be nice if that was all under one roof?’” This sparked an idea – a spine center that was comprehensive. He then bought some land and decided to build it. Initially, Dr. Chappuis thought of getting other specialists to work with him at the center, but the crash of the real estate market in 2007-2008 threw a spanner in that plan. “A lot of the doctors who agreed to come here withdrew their interest,” he recalls. “So, at that point, I thought I would be doing this on my own.”
Dr. Chappuis faced multiple challenges when he was establishing Spine Center Atlanta. He recalls that a lot of his colleagues were not necessarily encouraging to what he was doing. “I get that, that’s competition, and none of us like that. So, I think sometimes there might have been some issues with colleagues not being 100 percent supportive of this new idea of an outpatient spine surgery center,” Dr. Chappuis says. “I don’t know if we were the first in Georgia, but we were one of the first.”
At the time, many hospital surgeons argued that spine-related cases shouldn’t be performed in outpatient surgery centers. Dr. Chappuis points out that now, across the country, spine surgery is being done outpatient. Another significant challenge he encountered was financial. As he didn’t grow up with money, he had to seek financing from banks. It was difficult for banks to buy into or believe in what Dr. Chappuis was trying to accomplish.
Dr. Chappuis was also concerned about the competition from bigger groups. He could overcome every challenge he faced because of his belief in himself and his staff, and he knew that he had good training. He also believed that there was a bigger force that was guiding him. “And I think that bigger force has been guiding me all along,” he says.
Dr. Chappuis considers the establishment of Spine Center Atlanta as his greatest achievement. It currently has 110 employees. “My greatest accomplishment is being able to put this team together and keep this team together,” says Dr. Chappuis. He sees himself more as a coach of his team rather than a CEO. “If there are problems, I like to bring folks in to find those problems and try to coach them up to a level of success,” he explains.
Gradual Growth of a Unique Facility
Spine Center Atlanta has grown gradually over the years. Dr. Chappuis started with physical therapy practice, and about six years later, he opened a surgery center and then added an MRI. The center started to grow around 2008-2009, and now, it is a comprehensive spine center of excellence. “We have everything a hospital might have, except inpatients, ICU, and an emergency room,” Dr. Chappuis says.
He believes that Spine Center Atlanta’s incredibly caring, compassionate staff make it an outstanding healthcare facility for spine surgeries. “We also have the soul that is involved in caring for patients,” he adds.
In addition to clinic visits and surgery, patients come to Spine Center Atlanta for imaging studies, post-op rehab, and physical therapy. “One of the things that we do well is treating patients who’ve had previous or failed spine surgery. “We have a substantial practice in this area – that makes us somewhat unique,” Dr. Chappuis says. “We are also unique because we remain an independent practice.”
Work Culture at Spine Center Atlanta
At Spine Center Atlanta, the work culture is professional yet compassionate. “It’s very collegial,” Dr. Chappuis points out. We get along with each other. We treat everyone with respect.”
Dr. Chappuis and his team are not only very professional with their patients but also have a lot of compassion for them. He describes the center’s environment as family-type. It also has an extremely diverse practice. “We believe in diversity, but we haven’t gone out to seek it,” Dr. Chappuis says. “I always say to people, we have achieved diversity and DEI through organic means, instead of trying to find it.” They have been able to do that by keeping an open mind and avoiding prejudice.
He believes that by keeping an open mind and interviewing and picking the best people, a business becomes diverse without forcing diversity. Such an approach also leads to choosing the best people for the job, according to him.
Deriving Motivation from Patients
Patient outcomes are what keep Dr. Chappuis and his team motivated. He derives his motivation from the smiling faces of patients after surgery and their positive reviews. “They’re grateful for what we’ve done for them,” he points out. “That’s what keeps me coming back.” The center’s staff is also motivated to come back when they see that they helped patients with difficult spinal disorders.
Dr. Chappuis says that the entire team, including the business office, is motivated to continue do well when they see that patients are grateful and that they are doing well.
A Typical Workday
On Mondays, Dr. Chappuis usually has business meetings. “Sometimes I’ll have Zoom or e-visits, which is a big part of our practice now,” he points out. He also handles dispositions on Mondays. Tuesday and Thursdays are for surgeries. He operates all day on these two days, and on Wednesday, he does surgical consultation.
“Fridays are left for e-visits or anything else that needs to be done, and then I have a half a day for myself,” Dr. Chappuis says.
“I think a lot of times I sacrificed my personal life for my practice and patients. I look back with some regret,” Dr. Chappuis says. “But when I look at the number of patients I’ve helped, I’m very grateful for that.”
“I have a nice, kind girlfriend, and I think our relationship will eventually develop into something more close,” he adds.
Leader Who Leads and Serves
Dr. Chappuis is a leader who leads as well as serves. “I serve in the sense that I serve my patients,” he says. “I also serve my community.” As a leader, he also likes to set an example for employees around him through integrity and character. According to him, people around leaders usually gravitate toward whatever they show them.
He explains that leaders who are just trying to get by, show dishonesty and engage in scamming, and are solely focused on making money are most likely to surround themselves with people who display similar traits and ethos. But if leaders are showing integrity and character in whatever they are doing – for example, building a product with the intention of making it the best product, with a purpose that will help people, then people around them will adopt a similar approach. “So, I feel like I’m a leader who serves as well as leads,” Dr. Chappuis says.
Changing Landscape and Technology
Compared to 20 years ago, it has now become more difficult to treat patients, according to Dr. Chappuis. He points out that obtaining approvals for surgery is a challenge these days, which puts many patients in an unfortunate situation. He adds that surgeries are often denied, even when they are needed.
Dr. Chappuis also feels that it has become more difficult to practice medicine. “The administrative roles and paperwork have increasingly become cumbersome,” he says. “It has become a little more difficult because of what’s being asked of us to follow through on what we need to do to treat our patients.”
Like most businesses operating in the U.S., Spine Center Atlanta, too, has embraced technology. Dr. Chappuis informs that they recently started a new electronic medical record system. He believes that it is going to make them much more efficient. They are also assessing different types of robots and AI that could be used for intraoperative procedures.
“I’m just so fascinated by AI,” Dr. Chappuis says. “It’s amazing what these robots can be trained to do. They can pick up things that we could never imagine.” He also says that while robots may or may not replace hands-on surgery, they will certainly play a role in diagnosis and treatment planning.
Dr. Chappuis is someone who is trained to never be the first or the last to try something new. He says that he prefers to let others work on certain things, and if they work, he then adopts them.
“If there are problems, I like to bring folks in to find those problems and try to coach them up to a level of success.”
Plans for the Future
There are announcements about mergers and acquisitions every month. Dr. Chappuis too receives calls from a private equity group, asking, “Do you want to sell.” He acknowledges that at some point he will have to make a plan for the future, but he is not certain about taking everything they have built and turning it over to the private equity group. “I’m not going to say their interest isn’t in patient care, but I think their bigger interest is turning a profit,” Dr. Chappuis says.
“When it comes down to patient care versus profit, if you have investors, you have to look at profits. I’m really struggling with that right now,” he adds. “Honestly, I want to stay independent.”
CBS’s “60 Minutes” featured a CEO specializing in turning companies over to their employees. Dr. Chappuis found that interesting. “I’m going to look into what it might look like to give part of this practice to employees with the goal that they can’t sell to private equity,” he shares. “They have got to continue to maintain a private practice of excellence.”
“It seemed to me that medicine would be the best way to take these gifts and utilize them”
Dr. Chappuis is set to open a new office of Spine Center in July. He also has plans to expand it to three or four more offices within Georgia. It is because he believes that medicine is best practiced regionally, not nationally. “I think it’s kind of hard for a practice in Georgia to manage a practice in Las Vegas,” he says. “So, my goal is for us to expand regionally in the state of Georgia – maintaining excellence as we expand.”
Message to Aspiring Leaders
“My message to aspiring leaders is this: be the best you can be at what you do and set an example for everyone around you with integrity and character,” says Dr. Chappuis.
Dr. Chappuis advises aspiring leaders to get to know themselves. “Try to find your gift,” he says. As Pablo Picasso said, ‘The meaning of life is to find your gift, the purpose of life is to give it away.’” So, for aspiring leaders to be successful, they must find that gift. “And we all have a gift,” Dr. Chappuis says.
He also advises against being motivated solely by money. “Motivate yourself by being the best you can be at what you do. Make the best product you can make,” he says. For example, if someone is in the service industry, they have to be the best server possible; if they are a surgeon, they need to strive to be the best in their field.
Martin Luther King’s “Street Sweeper” speech is one of the most motivating speeches Dr. Chappuis has ever heard. In it, he said that if one is going to be a street sweeper, they should be the best sweeper they can be. “So, my message to aspiring leaders is this: be the best you can be at what you do and set an example for everyone around you with integrity and character,” Dr. Chappuis says.
