More than a Surgeon
A glimpse into the journey and life of Dr. Dan Morris of Jasper Bone & Joint
Words by Justin Hunter | Images by Blakeney Clouse
Don’t expect to see Dan Morris zipping down the fairway at the local golf course or yanking a bass out of a lake anytime soon. That is, unless his kids and wife are involved.
Morris, D.O., is an orthopedic surgeon who thrives on solving his patients’ pain problems and has dedicated his life to their wellbeing. More than a surgeon, he is a family man. Like a dinner napkin, his life is neatly folded into two principal areas of importance: family on the one side and work on the other.
My wife, Paige, and I were just talking about that I don’t have any hobbies like fishing or playing golf,” said Morris. “When I’m not in the office, I’m spending as much time as possible with our four kids. We have picked up riding bikes together. The reason I come to work is really to take care of them.”
Fellowship-trained in sports medicine and arthroscopy with specialized training in minimally invasive joint replacement surgery, fracture care, and general orthopedics, Dr. Morris has spent the last 10 years in operating rooms helping men and women regain their mobility. He is in his element underneath the bright lights of the surgical table.
Morris’s journey into the medical field is one of saying “yes” to self-discovery and a willingness to go through each open door presented to him. His parents never pressured him to become anything but allowed him to develop in his own timing. The father of four is taking the same approach with his children.
“I’m not going to push my kids to be what I am. A couple of my boys ask to see pictures of surgery. While my other son refuses to look at them, and my daughter isn’t interested at her age,” he says.
Morris didn’t have a childhood dream of becoming a doctor or a surgeon, nor was it a career he had planned after graduating from high school. There was no grandiose life plan written out in a journal hidden under his pillow. Morris had something more valuable: his parents’ support.
“My parents told me, ‘You do what you want to do, just do it right,’” he says.
After high school, Morris attended Auburn University, where he later met his wife, Paige.
Because he excelled in science, he obtained two undergraduate degrees from Auburn: one in zoology and one in microbiology.
After graduation, Morris tried his hand at teaching, but was turned off by the politics within the educational system. He eventually closed the door to education.
Inspired by his parents and his wife, all of whom were nurses, Morris applied for and was accepted into medical school at Touro University in Henderson, Nevada, a suburb of Las Vegas. At the time, he was working on his master’s in education and was a semester shy of finishing when the couple moved west. In Henderson, Paige supported the family by serving as a registered nurse.
“Once I got into medical school, I still didn’t know what I wanted to be exactly,” he admits. “I thought maybe an oncologist. I wanted to make people better and see them feel better. However, I was not too fond of how medicine affected people. I opted for surgery.”
A series of events led Morris in the direction of orthopedics. First, while in medical school, Morris tore his ACL and was operated on by Dr. Han at a placed called Parkway Surgery Center. While in recovery, Morris inquired about potential job openings at the medical center for Paige.
“I took a position as a nurse at the Surgery center and was introduced to Dr. Yi who also operated there,” Paige says. “Danny ended up shadowing Yi and wanting to go into orthopedics.”
The satisfaction and enjoyment Yi demonstrated in the course of his job had inspired Morris, who now had a definite plan for his future.
Morris completed an orthopedic residency program at Michigan State University, where he was named Orthopedic Chief Resident of the Year in 2016. He then finished his Sports Medicine Fellowship at the prestigious Hughston Clinic in Columbus, Georgia.
He returned to Alabama in part because his wife’s family is from Troy, Alabama. He has worked as an affiliate with Walker Baptist Medical Center for the last three years, and in 2019, he opened his practice, Jasper Bone & Joint Orthopedics, to better serve Jasper and the surrounding counties.
“Since starting my practice in 2019, the medical community has supported me so much that I was able to get going from the first month, and I have been building since then,” Morris says. “There is no better feeling than being able to fix somebody’s problem and get rid of their pain. I love seeing patients respond positively to treatment and seeing them get better is the most fun.”
As important as the practice is to Morris, he understands the importance of life balance and the lasting impact of being a present father and husband.
Perhaps through his experiences he’s learned that family is the most important hobby of all. 78