As an orthopaedic surgeon, Dr Russell is concerned with the body’s musculoskeletal system and quickly saw the value of engineering principles in orthopaedic surgery.

“I actually studied structural engineering initially and worked for an engineer for a couple of years and then I went back to medical school,” Dr Russell said.

“Pretty much straight away I saw the value of those skills in orthopaedics and thought ‘that’s what I’m passionate about’. It was a pretty easy decision for me.”

Dr Russell has been based in Adelaide and worked internationally, but has now moved to Warrnambool with his family to add to the city’s orthopaedic expertise and pioneer foot and ankle surgeries.

“I’ve sub-specialised in lower-limb orthopaedics, so I carry out the full range of lower limb orthopaedics – hip surgery, knee surgery and ankle surgery,” Dr Russell said.

“I’ll be expanding the service with hip and knee by 25 per cent and the foot and ankle work is not done at all in Warrnambool.

“What I’m bringing to Warrnambool is some international standard of lower-limb orthopaedics… the idea being that patients don’t need to travel to the city for this type of specialty service now.”

Dr Russell will work from St John of God Warrnambool and South West Healthcare and said undertaking locum work last year encouraged him to make the move to Warrnambool permanent.

“It’s a beautiful city, it’s vibrant and there’s a lot going on,” he said.

“It’s a great place to raise a family and that played a big part in our decision making process.”

He has extensive experience in managing arthritis, sporting injuries and deformity correction and looks forward to expand Warrnambool’s offering further down the track.

After making the switch from buildings to bodies many years ago, Dr Russell said there was plenty to love about his work.

“It’s very rewarding, changing people’s lives and increasing their quality of life. It’s very gratifying.”