In an interview with AAOS Now, Kevin J. Bozic, MD, MBA, describes his experience as a total knee arthroplasty (TKA) patient. Dr. Bozic, who serves at the Chair and Professor in the Department of Surgery and Perioperative Care at the University of Texas at Austin Dell Medical School, decided at the age of 50 that he could no longer put off a TKA. His knee pain, caused by a running injury while he was in residency, had started to affect everyday activities. “It’s like I tell my patients—the time to do it is when their pain is interfering with their quality of life on a daily basis. It was for me; it was affecting decisions in my life,” said Dr. Bozic. He describes how he worked with his surgeon, his influence on the procedure and the anxiety he experienced in turning control over to others. Read the first part of the two-part interview, and contact the qualitative study team at Dell Medical School if you’re a surgeon who has had arthroplasty and would like to learn more about the study.