Lakeshore Bone and Joint Institute Ushers in a New Era

Lakeshore Bone and Joint Institute (LBJI) rolled out the blue carpet and blew up the blue and silver balloon arch to celebrate the official signing of its newest musculoskeletal surgeon. The official documents were signed on Wednesday, October 14, at its state-of-the-art campus in Crown Point.

The Lakeshore Bone and Joint team is eager to welcome Hassan Farooq to practice in his home region of Northwest Indiana. Once he completes his clinical rotation at Mass General and his boards, he will return to provide care to his own community at an organization that holds itself to the highest standard and level of care. LBJI is committed to providing expert care to every patient who walks through its doors.

The decision to hire someone who is local to the area and cares for the Region as their own was intentional. The newly signed doctor graduated from Indiana University Northwest and continued his medical journey down in Indianapolis. Once he completes his clinical rotation in Massachusetts, he will return ready to serve the Region. 

“The folks here are invested in the community. And really, what they’re all about is bringing in the top-class care that you would get at any academic institution in the country, right here in Northwest Indiana,” said Thor Thordarson, MBA, RN, and chief executive officer of Lakeshore Bone and Joint Institute. 

While the community and the medical staff await the new doctor’s start date, there is work on the home front that needs tending to. Increasing educational opportunities and strengthening the organization and its namesake from within remain the highest priorities.

Thordarson has been on both sides of the medical field. He worked the front lines at Cleveland Clinic, and now he leads his team at Lakeshore Bone and Joint Institute with a level of empathy, care, and perspective that cannot be taught in a business degree program. 

He notes that there are some things you do as a caregiver and member of the medical staff that cannot be understood unless they are lived and experienced.

“I wanted to be involved in the decisions, rather than other people, many of whom had never taken care of patients, making decisions that affected what I could do as a nurse,” said Thordarson. “I’ve seen all kinds of outcomes from surgeries, and I can say with complete confidence these folks here are really, really good.” 

“We’re looking to build basically our own academic, high-specialty type care in Northwest Indiana, so people don’t feel like they have to leave our community to go get the best care,” added Aaron Anderson, MD, an upper extremity orthopedic specialist and president of LBJI.

His lofty goals are not that far out of reach.

“People always say, ‘Well, that can’t be done.’ But Mayo Clinic started as two doctors… in Minnesota in the middle of nowhere, and everyone thought nothing could happen. Now look at it,” said Dr. Anderson. “When I look at musculoskeletal care in Northwest Indiana, I don’t see any reason why we cannot achieve that with our own homegrown local people.”

Lakeshore Bone and Joint Institute has been serving the Region for more than 55 years. The robust organization partners with local groups big and small, from club sports to the university level, and its board-certified orthopedic surgeons and specialists deliver comprehensive care for the full spectrum of bone, joint, muscle, and sports-related conditions, getting our community back on track and in the game.

Anderson believes the surgical team at LBJI is comparable to those at Rush, University of Chicago, and Notre Dame, and he and the whole team believe the community should not have to cross state lines or travel long distances to find support and medical teams they can rely on.

At LBJI, no matter who you see or which location you visit across the region, the academic prowess, level of care, and medical expertise are consistent and backed by years of history, and they have no plans of slowing down.