To achieve excellence in many fields, especially in healthcare, many factors must work synergically. For example, state-of-the-art equipment and facilities or extraordinary investments in research. These investments could be public or private, depending on the goal; it doesn’t matter. What matters is another factor that is often forgotten: people.

Of course, extraordinary people need fertile soil to develop their talents, but when this happens, great things can happen. Of the many incredible doctors who we will look at brought relevant innovation to Italian healthcare. His name is Professor Stefano Zanasi.

Prof. Zanasi is an orthopedic specialist with nearly 40 years of experience: he specialized in orthopedics and traumatology in 1986 at the University of Modena. After that, he built his expertise, and now he operates anywhere between 800 to 900 patients a year. At least half of his operations are prosthetic surgeries on the shoulder and knees. In addition, he performs around 100 cartilage implants, operating on professional athletes as well. He prefers mini-invasive arthroscopic surgeries, particularly when they involve shoulders, elbows, and knees.

He and his staff can perform extremely rapid surgeries. It takes twenty to thirty minutes to “repair” a joint. Zanasi uses a very interesting technique, a sort of hybrid between the traditional prosthetic implant and the newest development in the field of stem cells. At this point, it is important to underline that the stem cells are extracted and prepared in a cocktail of nutritional elements from the patients themselves. This allows using them with no risk of rejection, given that the stem cells come from the patient’s adipose tissue. Another positive aspect is that this type of mini-invasive surgery requires a much shorter rehabilitation process, depending on the surgery. For example, if the surgery involves the knees, a patient can begin walking only a few days after, when it is on the hips, the patient can walk right after. Rehabilitation is always needed, but it is a much faster recovery when compared to traditional surgery.

Another interesting detail is one much-appreciated by physiotherapists: Dr. Zanasi will operate on both sides. For example, if the problem is on one knee, one elbow, one shoulder, or a side of the hip, he will “fix” the other as well. This is due to the fact that when a side is fixed, the problems on the other might surface. To avoid this, the surgery will involve both sides to have a more balanced posture and another operation in the future. The results are guaranteed for a more-than-a-lifetime period, so it represents a fine solution.

Now, Dr. Zanasi operates privately on patients needing to get back to their activities as soon as possible. He has operated with important managers and CEOs from important companies, so he is used to working, keeping exceptional levels of privacy. Being in Italy, however, he still works in the public system or pro bono, being able to operate in the most challenging situations. For example, he recently performed a hip replacement on a young patient affected by a rare type of cancer. The surgery was a success, with the patient being able to abandon his wheelchair in a week. It made the news throughout the whole country.

Medical Tourism Italy (MTI), the company founded by Claudio Paccanaro that allows foreign patients to access Italian Healthcare, was able to form a partnership with Dr. Zanasi. In its mission of continuous research to offer the best Italy has, they were able to get in contact with Professor Zanasi. Now, MTI can offer the same services they offer for other specializations, and, thanks to the doctor’s capabilities, the whole experience can be condensed in a little more than a week. This is an example of an Italian cutting-edge approach to healthcare.