Choosing a career in health care was a family-driven decision for Dr. John H. Braxton. His father was a radiologist and three of the five siblings in his family became physicians. His brother, like him, was a heart surgeon and his sister is a radiologist.
“I wasn't initially planning on going to medical school," said Dr. Braxton. “But I had a knee injury while I was living in Los Angeles, California and I went to see a provider named Dr. Jobe, who was an orthopedic surgeon. He did something very instrumental for me and asked if I wanted to meet someone."
Dr. Jobe introduced him to Tommy John, the Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher. Dr. Jobe was the physician who invented Tommy John surgery, which is surgery that repairs a torn ligament in the elbow. That experience drew him to orthopedic surgery initially.
“When I did my orthopedic rotation, I wanted to consider more than just the bone," he said. “I had learned about the physiology of the heart, lung and kidneys, which led me to specialize in cardiac surgery to integrate those aspects."
Dr. Braxton is board certified in thoracic surgery. He received is medical degree from Howard University in Washington, District of Columbia. He completed his residency at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington D.C., and at Yale University School of Medicine in New Haven, Connecticut. He completed his fellowship at Yale-New Haven Hospital in New Haven.
Dr. Braxton enjoys the growth path of the specialty, particularly the valvular treatments. As a cardiothoracic surgeon, he specializes in valvular diseases and has an interest in mitral valve repairs and TAVR (transcatheter aortic valve replacement) procedures.
He had started the TAVR program at Marshfield Medical Center in Marshfield and also started mitral valve repair procedures there. When the program first started, he had performed over 200, doing more than 50 annually.
In his practice, he stresses the importance of family.
“I want to make sure the family is part of the care, because heart surgery is a family matter," said Dr. Braxton. “I want them to be involved before a procedure happens so they know what to expect and what their loved one is going to go through."
Outside of work, Dr. Braxton enjoys running and biking. He bikes on weekends with anesthesiology friends and colleagues. He also enjoys shooting sports, such as 3-Gun competitions. He has three daughters. His youngest, twins, are currently in college. His oldest daughter is serving in the Marines.