Dr. Alexander Brown has worked with some of the top surgeons in America.

He’s worked with the top surgeon who serves athletes at the University of Alabama.

He’s worked with the head surgeon for WWE, the leading organization in professional wrestling.

Now Dr. Brown is practicing right here in McMinnville. He has an office at Ascension Saint Thomas River Park Hospital through his parent company, Tennessee Orthopaedic Alliance. He’s been working here about a month.

“I grew up in a small town and my wife grew up in Springfield, Tenn.,” said Dr. Brown. “I was working up in Nashville and the situation didn’t really feel right for me. I wanted something different. When this position came open here, it’s something that really attracted me. I grew up in Summerset, Ky., and went to school with the same kids from kindergarten to graduation. I wanted to return to a community like that.”

Consider it mission achieved as Dr. Brown has an office on the third floor of River Park and he’s been seeing patients for all their hip, shoulder, foot, knee and elbow needs.

Dr. Brown has an interesting story. His father was the main general surgeon in their small community and he was drawn to the profession, even though he knew the tiring hours his father worked and the late-night calls he had to answer for emergency surgery.

“The life of a surgeon is you have to be ready to go,” said Dr. Brown. “I told myself I didn’t want to be a general surgeon because I saw everything my father went through. But here I am as an orthopedic surgeon and it’s pretty much the same thing. Sometimes you’re just supposed to do something and surgery kept calling me.”

Dr. Brown, his wife, and their two young girls, ages 4 and 1, have made Warren County their home. It’s been a long journey to get here and one that’s seen Dr. Brown study in France, New Zealand and Melbourne, Australia.

He loved Australia, although the first thing he noticed when he arrived was the temperature was 118 degrees. “They are a very approachable, unassuming, happy people,” said Dr. Brown. 

He graduated from the University of Louisville Medical School and did a five-year orthopedic residency in Rochester, N.Y. “I gained all the surgical skills I needed,” said Dr. Brown. “But I wanted to come back to the South.”

He was accepted into the prestigious James Andrew Fellowship program in Birmingham, Ala., and that’s where he got the privilege of working with some of the top sports surgeons in the nation. 

“I can bring that same level of world-class care to McMinnville,” said Dr. Brown. “With athletes, the goal is to get them back playing as soon as possible, but you want to do it as safely as possible. The physical therapist and athletic trainer are very important to success. The same concepts apply to adults that apply to athletes. Surgery and physical therapy have to work together.”

In adults, orthopedic surgery may be required due to a sudden accident like a fall or car crash. It may also be needed due to a lifetime of repetitive motion.

Dr. Brown says he won’t work on the spine or back, but he’ll perform surgery on most anything else. He’s skilled at performing surgery on the shoulder, hip, knee, foot and elbow.

“If it’s something highly specialized, say a finger, and I know there’s someone else who can do it better, then I’ll refer you to that surgeon,” said Dr. Brown. “If I can’t take care of you, I know someone who can.”

Tennessee Orthopaedic Alliance is the largest and most comprehensive orthopedic surgery group in Tennessee. Dr. William Carpenter also practices with that group and he maintains regular hours at River Park Hospital. Dr. Carpenter specializes in joint replacement.

To call for an appointment, Dr. Brown’s office can be reached at (615) 896-6800. The website is www.TOA.com.