Dr. Candice Burnette
Assistant Professor, Department of Orthopedic Surgery
Could you give some background about where you were born, raised, went to college, medical school and residency?
I was born and raised in New Orleans, Louisiana and relocated to Atlanta, Georgia where I attended high school and earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Emory University. I earned my medical degree at Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Tennessee, after which I did my residency training in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at Mount Sinai in New York, New York. I further sub specialized and completed a Pain Management fellowship at Eastern Virginia Medical School in Norforlk, Virginia.
When did you join UTHealth?
Upon completion of my training, I relocated to Houston, Texas due to the booming healthcare market and to be closer to family and close friends. I joined the Richmond Bone and Joint Clinic group of Orthopedic surgeons which, in 2015, unified with the Orthopaedic Department of UT Health.
Tell us a little bit about what you do as a faculty member? What opportunities are available to you? What challenges do you face in your area discipline?
As a Pain Management physician with UT Health, I work with colleagues of various specialties with the goal of alleviating the pain and suffering of individuals through a multidisciplinary approach. I have the unique opportunity of working with a multitude of exemplary specialists in order to promote healing, reduce pain, and restore function to those in need. Additionally, as a UT Physician, I am in a position to educate other specialists about novel technologies, procedures, medications, and therapies in the field of Pain Management that may be useful as part of a collaborative effort to treat our patients. In the midst of the opioid crisis in our country, one of the greatest challenges in my area of discipline is conveying the importance of various methods for treating pain other than long-term opioid medications.
Who are/were your role models in medicine?
My parents and two older brothers, who are all physicians in all different specialties, are my role models in medicine. Growing up, I loved going to my mother’s Family Medicine practice and playing with stethoscopes, blood pressure cuffs, otoscopes, and all the other “gadgets” she had at her disposal. I marveled at my father’s precision when dissecting organs and preparing frozen sections as a Pathologist. During my older brothers’ training, I had an inside scoop on the hard work and perseverance required to obtain a medical degree. As a result, I always knew I wanted to pursue a career in medicine. In fact, to this day, I have a hard time answering the question “What would you be if you weren’t a doctor?”
How do you promote diversity in your position here at UTHealth?
By leading through example, my position at UTHealth affords me the opportunity to demonstrate to family, friends, students and colleagues the value of being open to a variety of approaches in treating each patient as the unique individual they are.