Though Dr. William C. Hagberg thrived as an orthopedic surgeon while also teaching orthopedic fellows for more than 30 years, he started coming to terms with the quality of the rest of his life upon retirement last year.

“I had arthritis in my shoulder for… seven to ten years. It was bothersome, but it was something I could work through. Until it progressively got worse,” Bill says. “It was getting harder and harder to not admit how much the stiffness and the pain was affecting pretty much everything.”

Bill continues, “Getting down on the ground to play blocks with the grandkids meant I had to think about how I was going to get up. And I had completely stopped playing golf. I wanted to take my wife, Margie, to get lessons so we could play together and that just wasn’t possible.”

The time had come to take action, and the choice of surgeon was clear — Dr. James R. Mullen of St. Clair Medical Group Orthopedic Surgery, a division of St. Clair Health. Bill shares, “I knew Dr. Mullen’s talent from scrubbing in with him, so I was very comfortable.”

Expert care from people who care means that at St. Clair Health, Dr. Mullen builds a specific and customized treatment plan around the way Bill wants to live his life. And with advanced imaging and 3D computer-navigated technology, Dr. Mullen is able to model his joint replacement procedure prior to actually performing it.

“The 3D surgical modeling gives both myself and the patient precise visualization of exactly what we’re going to do prior to the surgery, with the ultimate goal of maximizing function and minimizing pain,” Dr. Mullen explains.

“I had no pain at all—and I slept well the very first night. I couldn’t be more amazed at how quick and pain-free the recovery process has been,” Dr. Hagberg says. “I was out there chipping around the golf course after just 12 weeks and was able to raise my arm higher than it has gone in 10 years, at just six weeks from surgery.”

At St. Clair Health, Bill is more than a patient. Knowing Bill is also a husband, grandfather, and golfer means Dr. Mullen can build a specific and customized plan around the way Bill wants to live his life. Learn more here about Bill’s story.

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