Charlie G

By the time our son Charlie was 4 years old, we had taken him to 4 different orthopedic surgeons for consults because he kept complaining of his legs getting “tired”. After being told over and over that “it’s nothing”, we decided to take him to HSS. We made an appointment with Dr. David Scher and right away we felt he cared. He was the only doctor who listened to us and took our concerns seriously enough to order x-rays right away. Immediately, he was able to see that Charlie had hip dysplasia and referred us to a geneticist. After getting an MPS diagnosis we knew we were going to need a good orthopedic surgeon to care for Charlie and all his challenges ahead. We loved the fact that Dr. Scher understood Charlie’s need to live life to the fullest despite his physical limitations. He wasn’t going to let his diagnosis slow him down and we needed a doctor like Dr. Scher who wasn’t going to set limitations but rather help him reach his goals.

We met with Dr. Scher annually and developed a strong patient/doctor relationship with him over the years. Charlie’s specific condition is extremely rare and like most doctors - Dr. Scher had not had much experience with treating its various orthopedic symptoms. Like an excellent and caring doctor that he is, Dr. Scher reached out to different doctors who had treated patients like Charlie and did his own research in order to better care for him. Following Dr. Scher’s advice we decided to operate on Charlie’s hips soon before his 10th birthday in January 2020. Dr. Scher did bilateral femoral derotation osteotomies and the surgery was a complete success. The care we received by the staff at HSS was outstanding from beginning to end. The pediatric team is truly remarkable. The physical therapists were knowledgeable and dedicated. Everyone was welcoming, professional and attentive. Dr. Scher’s bedside manner is unlike no other surgeon I have ever known. He is thoughtful, thorough, patient and compassionate. And needless to say, he is an excellent surgeon. The surgery improved Charlie’s quality of life significantly. He was able to walk better, get stronger and feel less pain in just a few months post-op. We moved away that summer, and Dr. Scher put us in touch with a fellow pediatric surgeon in our area that could take care of Charlie’s hardware removal. Dr. Scher called us directly to speak about the timing, the process and the logistics of this follow up surgery with a different surgeon. That’s a doctor who cares about his patients. He is the kind of doctor who calls you at home, after hours – just to put your mind at ease.

We are forever thankful for Dr. Scher and the staff at HSS. We will always keep in touch with him and if ever Charlie is in need of another procedure in the future, we will make the trip up to NY to give Charlie the best care he can get – with Dr. David Scher.