Daniel Rubio, MD, was appointed as assistant professor for the spine team in the Department of Orthopaedics & Rehabilitation on September 1.
For Rubio, coming back to the Yale School of Medicine is a homecoming. Rubio graduated from the department’s residency program in 2019 before leaving for a fellowship at Washington University in St. Louis.
"My training at Yale was an incredible experience for me, and that left a lasting impression," Rubio said. "Working with my attending (physicians) as a resident was always a positive experience. I think coming back as a junior attending, you want to be around people like that: you want to be in a supportive environment. You want to be around staff, nurses, PAs, and NPs, that are all there for a common purpose. And I think that’s a unique thing to Yale. Not many academic programs have this approach."
Rubio knew early on that he wanted to get into medicine. He watched his first surgery in high school as part of a medical program and initially thought he would attend medical school to become a cardiothoracic surgeon. That changed when he saw how being a spinal surgeon required complex puzzle solving. He wanted to be a part of the team doing the detective work, finding what is wrong, how it impacts a patient, and how to make it better.
“Orthopaedics is rewarding because you get to see people get back on their feet," Rubio said. "You build relationships with patients where you make a plan together. You communicate. You discuss your recommendations with them, treatment options, and plan to approach treatment as a team. I think that suits my personality."
Before attending Drexel University College of Medicine in his native Philadelphia, he spent a few years working in biotechnology. He patented a biomarker used in the early detection of neurodegenerative diseases. Rubio said that basic science research is something he'd like to continue during his time at Yale, where he hopes to also rejoin projects with Dr. Jonathan Grauer’s lab.
I think coming back as a junior attending, you want to be around people like that: you want to be in a supportive environment. You want to be around staff, nurses, PAs, and NPs, that are all there for a common purpose. And I think that’s a unique thing to Yale. Not many academic programs have this approach.
Assistant Professor Daniel Rubio, MD
“I enjoy work looking at clinical outcomes,” he said. “I’m hopeful I’ll be able to do more of that during my time here as well as pursuing basic science research, specifically looking for biomarkers to aid in diagnosis and assessing disease impact."
When he’s not in the clinic at the Spine Center at Long Wharf and Guilford where he'll be seeing patients, Rubio enjoys cycling and has participated in Smilow Cancer Hospital's Closer to Free ride. This year he anticipates he'll be chasing his new French Bulldog puppy, Jenkins, around a bit more. He lives with his fiancée in Milford.