Raising the bar

A world-renowned specialist in complex nerve reconstruction, Amy Moore, MD, FACS, is leading with advanced, hands-on training to prepare the next generation of plastic surgeons to give patients like Byron Heersink a path back to full function.

It’s been nearly five years since the Heersink family experienced the most harrowing night of their lives. Byron Heersink was playing in his family’s foyer in Dothan, Alabama, on a Thursday evening in January of 2021. The 6-year-old tripped on a rolled-up rug, crashing through a single-pane glass window near the front door. It caused a deep cut in his right arm near the armpit.

His life was in jeopardy. Terrifying hours followed, including conversations about amputation. A helicopter took him to life-saving surgery in Birmingham, some 200 miles away. Doctors there were able to stabilize him, but none believed he’d regain use of his right arm. His parents weren’t so sure.

As Byron recovered in the weeks that followed, his parents, Sebastian and Emily, began surveying trusted physicians: “If this was your son, who would you turn to for help with an injury like this?” They asked each to recommend three candidates. The responses varied, but one name appeared on every list: Amy Moore. The Heersinks reached out to her for an appointment.

At the forefront of her field

Amy Moore, MD, FACS, is a world-renowned specialist in complex nerve reconstruction. Since 2019, she has been a professor and the Robert L. Ruberg MD Alumni Chair in the Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at The Ohio State University College of Medicine.

People like the Heersinks — those needing someone who can perform the most complex nerve-reconstruction surgeries to restore function — seek out her expertise. As a result, residents and fellows at Ohio State get to work with her on cases that they wouldn’t see elsewhere.

Every plastic surgery resident at Ohio State rotates with Moore during their time here — no other program in the country has a rotation specific to nerve injuries. Instituting that program was important to Moore after her arrival here.

“I couldn’t have residents graduating our program not understanding what I do or what we can do, when nerves affect every aspect of care we provide as plastic surgeons,” she says.

Minh Nguyen, MD, ’24 Res, was one of those residents when Byron came to Columbus a few months after his accident.

“She’s one of the very few people in the world who can do these cases,” says Nguyen, who assisted with Byron’s surgery. It was a challenge for Nguyen both professionally and personally — he was a new father at the time.

“My son was one or two years old at the time. You know these are the things that are going to happen, and it can happen to anyone. If it happened to my son, I’d bring him to Dr. Moore.”

Byron’s case involved injury to the brachial plexus — the bundle of nerves in the neck and torso that connect to the nerves in the arm. Reconstruction surgeries in that part of the body are among the most complicated surgeries that nerve specialists perform.

“With the brachial plexus, you have to dedicate your life to it,” Nguyen says. “It’s great to learn from her, but you kind of humble yourself. You learn that these cases are tough.”

Building a world-class teaching environment

Moore’s presence at Ohio State made it easy for Kaitlin Kavanagh, MD, to decide where to pursue her residency. The 2020 graduate of the University of Virginia School of Medicine was a candidate in the first class of potential residents that Moore interviewed after her arrival.

“She just had so much enthusiasm and so many big ideas about how to innovate and change our program here at Ohio State,” says Kavanagh, now a chief resident in her sixth year of the Integrated Residency Program at the Ohio State Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery.

“I think we have one of the most well-rounded plastic surgery programs in the country, and a lot of that has to do with the changes that Dr. Moore has made over the past six years.”

Key among those changes is the addition of a fellowship specifically for nerve and functional reconstruction. The program, now in its third year, is rare: Only about a dozen nerve fellowships exist nationally. Clinical trials are another mark of distinction for the program under Moore. The U.S. Department of Defense has funded one that has led to the creation of a handheld device that provides electrical stimulation to help patients.

But many residents say the truly invaluable experience at Ohio State is the opportunity to work on the types of cases that Moore specializes in.

“As a junior resident, it’s really intimidating to see the operations that she does,” says Mark Mishu, MD, a fifth-year plastic surgery resident. “But she tries to break it down for you piece by piece and walks you through it. I’m obviously nowhere close to that level, and I don’t know if I ever will be, but I’ve definitely grown a lot being in the operating room with her.”

A focus on improving patients’ lives

Seeing Byron today, one would notice that only a few scars indicate anything ever happened to him. Moore performed a lengthy surgery and continued to follow up with him remotely as he regained use of his right arm during his rehabilitation process. He’s a lanky, athletic sixth-grader who loves shooting hoops with his dad in the driveway in Dothan.

Moore’s priority is making sure there are more nerve surgeons with her level of expertise, so that there can be more Byrons getting full use of their bodies back.

“Early conversations with Byron’s parents were ‘Why are there not more surgeons who do what you do?’ And I just said that the training doesn’t exist yet,” Moore says. “But we’ve been at the forefront of that.

“We have so many patients coming to Ohio State. It’s a gift, and it’s also our responsibility and accountability to them to do the best for them.”