In a chance meeting, Dr. Sam Taylor, of the Hospital for Special Surgery Stamford, was slated to perform shoulder surgery on a Greenwich teacher who inspired him to become a doctor.

When it came down to the procedure, it was business as usual. He used a popular option for patients with severely worn cartilage and major rotator cuff muscle and tendon tears known as reverse shoulder replacement surgery.

The reverse device is meant to stabilize the joint and allow the stronger muscle at the top of the shoulder to lift the arm.

“We continue to refine things from a technical standpoint,” said Taylor. “The majority of people do extremely well and do extremely well quickly because the type of pain that they've been living with is gone immediately.”

He and his team implanted the metal stem into the large bone that connects the shoulder to the elbow – and then rebuild the rest of the joint.

Patient Arleene Ferko appreciates the technical expertise and the practical part of having her doctor local due to the collaboration between HSS Orthopedics and Stamford Health.

“HSS has the entire fifth floor of…Stamford Hospital. I didn't have to go into the city for surgery,” she said.