In late September 2022, UNC Department of Orthopaedics was pleased to welcome Assistant Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery Samantha Tayne, MD, MBA, as the newest subspecialist to join the Divisions of Sports Medicine, Shoulder & Elbow Surgery and Pediatric Orthopaedic Surgery. Dr. Tayne brings two years of Orthopaedic Surgery subspecialty training to the Department. Before joining UNC Orthopaedics, she completed a Sports Medicine and Hip Preservation fellowship (2021-2022) at Duke University Medical Center and her Pediatric Orthopaedic Surgery fellowship at Phoenix Children’s Hospital (2020-2021). 
Dr. Tayne enters academic orthopaedics with a background in scholarly and leadership excellence in subspecialty practice and healthcare management. She completed a dual MD/MBA program based at Tufts University School of Medicine (MD) and the Heller School for Social Policy and Management at Brandeis University (MBA) (2011-2015). In 2015, the host institutions honored Dr. Tayne and program teammates with the MD/MBA Best Team Consulting Project Award. Over five years of Orthopaedic Surgery residency at the University of Illinois at Chicago (2015-2020), Dr. Tayne was active with the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgery (AAOS) Resident Assembly Health Policy Committee. She was also a scholar in the Feagin Leadership Program throughout her sports medicine training. Prior to medical school, Dr. Tayne graduated from the University of Pennsylvania Magna Cum Laude (2010).
Over her residency and fellowship years, Dr. Tayne’s scholarly excellence was repeatedly recognized by her field. Her awards include the Robert Ray MD, PhD Award for Basic Science Orthopaedic Research (2020), the William Garrett Jr. MD PhD Research Day Award (2022) and multiple scholarship grants awarded by various societies. She also served as first author on several book chapters, multiple peer-reviewed publications, and scholarly abstracts and proceedings.
As she enters sports medicine, hip preservation, and pediatric orthopaedic practice at UNC Health, Dr. Tayne looks forward to exploring inter-disciplinary patient care, didactic and research opportunities across the University’s medical and public health campuses.
She notes: “During my training, I found a passion for caring for pediatric, adolescent, and young adult athletes and further developed my interest in hip preservation. I feel that there is a unique opportunity to have a profound impact on these patients lives, especially as our understanding and treatment of hip pathology continues to evolve.
I am eager to join the collaborative environment at UNC, to advance our understanding of the sports-related and hip injuries in young athletes and to improve access to care and maximize public health impacts. I am excited to work with trainees and build mentorship relationships, especially for young women interested in orthopaedics. I also look forward to caring for the University’s athletes, as well as serving the patients and athletes within our community.”