William Workman, MD

If you have broken your collarbone (clavicle fracture), Dr. Workman is the surgeon to see.
Broken collarbones – even those that are displaced and where bones overlap – used to be treated one of two ways: waiting it out in a sling, or plating. Waiting has sub-​optimal outcomes: 20−40% of cases either don’t heal («non-​union») or heal wrong/​overlapping («mal-​union»). Plating requires removing the protective cover of the bone, and attaching a plate to the top, with around 6 – 7 screws. The hardware is often visible post-​surgery through the skin, and in ~10−20% of the cases, patients have it removed (=a second surgery under full anesthesia, with a second recovery period). In either case, a significant portion of patients don’t recover full range of motion, and/​or have continued shoulder pain. Recovery can be quite lengthy – think arm in a sling and pretty much not usable for two or more months.
This is what I learned from pretty extensive online research when I broke my collarbone on Christmas Day (can’t do much else when you’re stuck on a couch and moving hurts!). And these are the two options you’re most likely to hear about from many orthopedic surgeons when you come in with a broken collarbone.
Dr. Workman has a better option for clean mid-​bone breaks: he’s one of the few surgeons in the Bay Area who internally fix a broken collarbone with a new medical device, the Sonoma Orthopedic CRx pin. It’s a surgical steel pin that is flexible upon insertion, so it can fit the s-​shape of the collar bone. Once inserted, it gets stiffened up and grips the bone from the inside with two «talons»; it’s also secured at the shoulder end with one screw. Surgery is much less invasive (two small scars that are vertical and less visible), with quicker recovery. Because the pin is inside the bone, most patients leave it in – an advantage over plates as well as other pin options (e.g., Rookwood or Acumed), which have a tendency to come lose and cause trouble and then need to be removed.
Here’s one study that compares plates vs. tradition (straight) pins:
Even the straight pins, with their issues, had better results than plates (for these relatively simple fractures); and the Sonoma pin fixes several of the issues of the traditional pins. (I couldn’t find any comparable study of the Sonoma pin – although the company has some pretty good resources, including many case studies, on its web site.)
I found the Sonoma Orthopedics CRx pin by doing online research (the first surgeon I consulted didn’t even mention it, even though he works at a major university hospital!), and found Dr. Workman through this research as well. The pin is quite new (across all cases, Sonoma says they’ve done about 3,000 or so of these surgeries), and many surgeons aren’t aware of this new option to treat this fracture.
Man, am I glad I found this alternative treatment, and Dr. Workman!
Dr. Workman was able to see me right away, verified that I was a good candidate for the CRx pin, and was able to do the surgery just two days after my initial visit. He was very professional, answered my long list of questions in lots of detail, and exuded confidence in his skills, without coming across as arrogant or denying that this surgery, like any surgery, has some risks. He’s the type of surgeon you trust – someone who’s very capable, but also cares about you as a patient. It speaks for him that although he has years of practice doing plating surgeries, he’s the kind of physician who is looking out for new treatment options, who gets trained on the latest procedures to help his patients recover more quickly. (He also works with the new wrist pin from Sonoma – and was very excited when he explained to me, just as part of our conversation about new medical devices, how much that technology has helped make wrist fractures easier to treat, too.)
I’m two weeks post surgery now – and I’ve already regained 90% of my range of motion. I only needed to take two days off work post-​surgery, and was off narcotic pain killers in a few days. I’m able to take the arm out of the sling already, and do activities of daily living. I’m work on a computer a lot, and have no problems typing – in fact, I was able to type well within a week of the surgery. Both Dr. Workman and my PT (at Physical Edge PT, co-​located with Dr. Workman’s office) are confident I’ll regain full function in my shoulder.
I’m writing this review in part because I want others to be able to know about the new pin treatment option for broken clavicles – and because I wish I’d have someone offer a review of this procedure online to help me make my decision on what treatment to pursue. Of course, I’m only two weeks post-​op, so things may still change – but given my good experience so far, and the fact that this pin isn’t yet well known, I hope that this review may help others who are doing their research make the best decision for their own care.

I’d give Dr Workman 5 stars for correctly diagnosing me — after 2 other doctors misdiagnosed me.
He did a good job on the surgery — as a follow up MRI showed everything was copacetic.
I docked him one star for communication — He could have been more clear as how to severe my surgery was going to be — how much time off work and exercise I would need to take.
Overall — great doctor — but please be more communicative with your patients — we don’t know as much as you do!
Thanks!

Dr Workman performed a scope on my left hip last year to treat my impingement, a procedure I’d been lead to believe from reading The Internet would take months of painful recovery and possibly prevent me from ever exercising at a high level again.
Three months later I was squatting 405lbs with a pause, pain free and ‘ass to ground’
Last week he did the same operation on my right hip (unfortunately bad things come in pairs) and my recovery this time around has been even more incredible. I’m walking normally, pain free, can squat down all the way, I’m driving and will be going back to work on Monday.
Dr Workman treats professional athletes who’s million dollar contracts depend upon him being the absolute best at what he does — knowing this, you can pretty much ignore every review on this page and just go and see the man as you really can’t get a better endorsement. He’s truly a remarkable surgeon
(if you want to get some context on the operation I had done and the average surgeons skills vs Dr workmans, then I suggest reading the recovery blogs or facebook support groups for patients recovering from FAI surgery — you’ll see how grim the results are from the average surgeon performing this procedure)

Dr Workman is the best! I had knee surgery in 2007 and have not had an issue since. When I tore my Achilles, I came back from NY to have my surgery with Dr Workman. I had a lot of concern going into this process and it has been way easier than I expected it to be.
I’m 10 weeks from my surgery and feel much better. The pain that had been on going for years is gone, the pain from the surgery itself id minimal and I’m looking forward to resuming an active lifestyle. I’m extremely grateful to Dr Workman and his staff for making such a stressful situation as smooth as possible. He is gifted in what he does and I’m thankful to have had my surgery (s) done by Dr Workman.

I tried to make an appointment, but the receptionist was very rude and she sounded like she didn’t want to help at all. Turned out, turned out Dr. work man just not to back pain and she made me sound like I was stupid. She wasn’t helpful at all and rude. I should have gotten her name. If she doesn’t like assisting customers then she shouldn’t be a receptionist at all. I called Dr. matock instead and they had excellent service.

The best orthopedic surgeon by far !
I’ve had 4 surgeries in both knees and for the first time after surgery I haven’t experience pain nor any kind of complications.
Dr Workman and his fabulous staff are performing miracles in Walnut Creek!
Thank you

Dr. Workman is a rock star as far as I’m concerned. This was my only surgery with Dr. Workman, but I paid him a visit back in 2010 for an unrelated knee issue (which I also gave him five stars for), which was treated with therapy. I was very impressed with him then, and there was no hesitating about going to him again. This time it was for severe hip pain, which I had been dealing with for a couple of years. All the basketball in my 30’s and 40’s finally caught up with me. The X-​rays said it all. Dr. Workman replaced my hip at the end of January 2014. It was a huge success. The quality of my life is SO much better. The only bad part is that my Smith & Nephew hip holds me up at the TSA lines at the airports.
Dr. Workman is a true professional. You can tell he loves his job, he’s on top of the latest techniques, he strives to lay out the options for you, and he gives you the best results possible. He is very well respected in this profession. If you look around, you’ll see that he works closely with the Oakland A’s as a team physician. He’s also worked (or maybe he still does) with the Cal Bears, and probably other teams I’m I don’t know about.
In summary, I feel very fortunate that I’ve been referred to Dr. Workman. I couldn’t have landed with a better orthopedic surgeon and experienced a more positive result.
E.S.
P. S. One last thing — in Dr. Workman’s office suite there is an outstanding physical therapy firm (Personal Edge Physical Therapy). They are also excellent. I’m going to write a separate review for their services. It’s such an advantage that the doctor and the therapists work together, so they all know about and share your progress information after surgery.

Doctor Workman is a great doctor, knowledgeable, professional and his staff is always very helpful and responsive. My son, 12 years old had trouble with his knee and Doctor Workman gave him a great visit and even without an MRI he felt that the join was little too mobile. He then ordered an MRI and reassess his injury. He recommended rest and a knee brace for a couple of weeks. An OS that does not pushes surgery all the time is a good doctor. He is also the OS for the Oakland A’s and only top doc get those jobs!

Dr. Workman and his staff were phenomenal from the start. My husband was unfortunately in an accident where he rupture his patella tendon and shattered his knee cap (ouch times a billion!) Given the fact that he just started a job just 6 weeks prior, we were stressed to find the perfect surgeon to treat him.
For the moment I called in to book a consult, which they fit us in the next day, I felt at ease. And although we had a small wait due to being fit in, we weren’t rushed. All questions answered… And quickly scheduled surgery for the next day. He was able to fit us on even though he had a full day scheduled.
The surgery went without issues, maybe an hour after they took my husband back, they called me back. The surgery was at premier surgery center and the staff there were wonderful as well, I’ll save that for my next review :)
Tomorrow marks four months since the accident and my husband has been back to work for 3 weeks. Not one negative thing can come out of my mouth regarding this office.
Thank you Dr. Workman and to Tanya for expediting the process to recovery for my husband.

Dr Workman is a great doctor I have been ever met. I broke my let from skiing in lake Tahoe, he takes care of my leg very well. I highly recommended it to all skiers.

I first saw Dr. Workman in 2007 for a serious work related injury. He was working out of my workers comp clinic. We didn’t start out on the best foot, I initially found his bedside manner a little condescending, but soon warmed up to him. He is VERY knowledgable and a truly nice guy. I have had to have 3 surgeries (2007, 2009, and 2011), all performed by him, and I couldn’t have found a better surgeon. I was in law enforcement and we were attempting to put my ankle back together again so that I could return to full duty. He did a wonderful job operating on a very small area that had a lot of damage to it. Unfortunately, I was forced to retire, but I know that I was in the best possible hands, and he did everything he could to try to get me back to working condition!
The staff is courteous and friendly, he’s usually on time in the room, and he does a STELLAR job of explaining very complicated matters in a very truthful and user friendly way.
He takes his time when he’s with you and I’ve never felt like he was rushing to get to his next patient. I know I will need to see him again for my injury and some «maintenance» and I feel better knowing I’m in such capable hands! Thanks Doc!

I had a ruptured achilles tendon from a Squash game. I got surgery done the day before Thanksgiving and so far — excellent. [Including the outpatient facility].
Dr. Workman himself is intelligent (yes, we already assume that since he is a Top Ortho Dr) but he is also kind, he listens, he’s professional and very talented (and he has a great team, from the moment you walk in the door).
I’ll update with how I recover, but somehow, I have a good feeling.
If you are hesitant about choosing an Orthopedic Surgeon, feel free to email me — I’ll gladly give you the run-​down and my recommendation {I did my research}.

I hurt my knee at the gym, and after a friend recommended that I go here, I decided to call here for an appointment. I was luckily able to take a cancellation’s place and be seen 2 weeks before my other medical office’s orthopedic doctor was free. The office was clean and professional, and the staff were friendly.
Since I never had an injury before I thought it best to make sure I was diagnosed correctly. The physican’s assistant (PA) I had seen at the general doctor’s office informed me I had a partial tear of my ligaments, but I would need an MRI and an orthopedic doctor’s opinion to know more. When I heard this, I thought partial tear = surgery and freaked out. I haven’t been injured more than an ankle or finger sprain so this sounded serious. When I went to Dr. Workman’s office, he informed me that the PA was incorrect and that I had a simple knee sprain. No MRI needed. I told him I had a couple experiences when my knee buckled and he didn’t seem the least bit concerned. Whew, I thought… but then I kept thinking how can they be so different?
Later that week, I was leaving my friend’s house down the stairs when suddenly my knee buckled and BOOM! — I fell down the stairs. Luckily I was only on the 2^nd to last step but I landed RIGHT ON THE SAME KNEE. When I did a little research on WebMD I looked up the definition of a knee sprain and its degrees, and saw that a 2^nd degree knee sprain IS a partial tear! It’s not that Dr. Workman misdiagnosed me, but it would have been nice to know that these were basically the same diagnosis. Perhaps because it was not operational as some on here have stated it wasn’t as serious to him, but for someone who’s never been injured before it would have been nice to know what I was dealing with so I could avoid re-​injuring myself.

As the self proclaimed, «Most injury prone individual on the planet» I have seen Dr. Workman for various orthopedic issues over the last six years. I am an avid competitive equestrian and runner. Six years ago he preformed a labral reconstruction of my right shoulder along with a labral repair. Today, my shoulder is still holding strong despite being a very active and ridiculously injury-​prone person. Fast forward to 2011 when I was injured on duty at my workplace. This time, it was my left shoulder and I had almost identical symptoms to my first right shoulder injury. Dr. Workman ordered an MRI and it revealed I needed a labral reconstruction. Dr. Workman performed surgery on my left shoulder 3 months ago. I also suffered from FAI in my right hip. Dr. Workman explained that surgery was, indeed the only option if I wanted to remain in my current active lifestyle. My hip was the most symptomatic when I was, you guessed it… riding horses and running. The two activities that bring joy and sanity to my universe. It has been nine months since my hip surgery and I feel 150% improved from prior to surgery. Not many people can say that after surgery… historically, you usually hear, «Your body is never the same after surgery, you are never normal again.» Not me! My hip has been running and riding again with zero of the pain as I had experienced before. Unfortunately, riding is currently on hiatus until my post surgical left shoulder heals now.
Dr. Workman has been absolutely kind, informative and very personable virtually every visit I have had with him. If you factor in all of my visits, I have probably seen him close to thirty times over the years so I deem my assessment as bearing validity. Does Dr. Workman use a Ipad type device while he is talking to you? Um… yes. It is that vital information called… you know, your chart? With ANY doctor, they are going to be scribbling notes frantically while trying to keep up with what you divulge. This is to help YOU and your case so he can recollect everything you are having concerns with. This seemed fairly common sense and self explanatory to me; however, reading a few negative comments on some reviews, it apparently was an issue with people. It’s not 1986 anymore folks and the vast majority of physicians do not write on a paper chart with a pen anymore, they use a more modern device, not a #2 pencil; hence, Dr. Workman’s use of an electronic chart.
As far as Dr. Workman being arrogant or narcissistic, I have never witnessed it. In reality, he is one of the most down to earth, pleasant physicians/​surgeons I have met and I have visited my fair share. I will contend if you are the type of person who needs a lot of hand holding, head patting, someone to call at any minute or hour when you are in need (with an invisible crisis), and are an individual that wants constant reaffirmation that you will, «be perfectly alright through this surgery» and need a surgeon you can be Facebook friends with as well as one that will double as not only your surgeon but your psychotherapist… then Dr. Workman is not the surgeon for you [insert slice of sarcasm here].
However, if you want a surgeon that will do a fabulous job getting you back to one-​hundred percent, answer all of your questions, treat you with respect and concern, and continuously take the time to further educate himself by attending seminars and conferences all over the world to be an even MORE phenomenal surgeon (do narcissists do that? I was under the distinct impression narcissists already believed they were perfect, but I digress) then Dr. Workman IS your kind of surgeon.
Furthermore, the entire office staff is incredible and an integral part of this successful practice. They run a well organized, first class establishment. The majority of my staff interactions are with Tere and I have to say, she is the cherry on top of an already sensational practice. Tere always makes the time to answer any questions, help with paperwork, etc. Even when she is absolutely inundated with other patient’s paperwork, she makes you feel as if you are the practice’s only patient whether it is on the phone or in person. Thank you to Dr. Workman and his superb staff!!!

Spent lots of time with me, paid attention, was careful and suitably conservative. The cortisone shot was painless. I liked his straightforward approach. Very nice office and simple parking for WC. The PT area is very open and has a spectacular view.

I have read all these reviews and was puzzled at how they appeared to be at different ends of the spectrum. My opinion is that they’re all true. In my many, many visits to see Dr. Workman in the last year, he exhibited different characteristics depending on the situation.
First let me say that his staff is top notch – very professional, personable, helpful and efficient.
Dr. Workman performed knee surgery on me. Prior to the surgery, he was caring and listened attentively. I felt he cared about my needs, and I trusted him. He was not quick to suggest surgery. Therefore, when he told me I’d need it, I trusted his judgment and did not seek a second opinion.
However, Dr. Workman’s in-​office demeanor changed post-​surgery. After I had the surgery, he no longer seemed willing to offer any support or further help. He would continually tell me I was overdoing it – despite never having asked me what my life was like on a daily basis. He began texting about other matters during my office visits. And on my last visit I’m certain he was checking and answering his emails.
Dr. Workman told me I would have a full recovery in 6 weeks. It has been over 6 months now, and I still am not able to do much activity with my knee. Even walking at certain times/​distances is painful. I finally sought a second opinion and hopefully am on my way to what I hope will be final healing and recovery.
In my opinion Dr. Workman is stoic and not forthcoming with a lot of details, instructions or guidance. If you seek a doctor with a warm and friendly bedside manner, someone who will guide you through the entire process, give you good, clear directions for care, someone who will question why you’re not where you should be in your rehab and recovery and suggest alternatives for getting better, then Dr. Workman is not the doctor for you.

To start, I wasn’t going to give Dr. Workman 5 stars… in fact initially to be honest I wasn’t all that impressed, and not personally (or from his professionalism or skills) but the fact that as a new patient, I had to wait almost 1 hour after my scheduled appointment to be seen by him.
I did mention it to his staff, they were apologetic and said it happened to be a day were several new patients were scheduled. Well, I did end up seeing him, he did indeed take his time at looking at my injury, which I was happy with… so I decided to wait until my second visit before I wrote any reviews, to be fair.
Second visit: I had called to see if there were any cancellations, and as usual they take your number and tell you they will call you back if they get one. What was different about this office, than 99% of other offices, they actually DO call you back and try to fit you in… very impressive.
Even though I was not happy with the diagnosis (more like the outcome, not the actual diagnosis :) everything went smoothly. Dr. workman took the time to go over my MRI with me, show me were there is a tear and give me options. His receptionist was wonderful, the appointment was on time and I could not have been more satisfied. Highly recommended, Dr. workman knows his stuff and cares about your treatment.
One last note about Dr. Workman. While most Dr. want to push surgery on you (lets face it that’s how they make a living), Dr. workman did not. He gave me options, most of which didn’t actually include surgery. Kudo’s to him and his team.

I had a meniscectomy done by Dr Workman. I had hurt both my knees by years of softball and then becoming over weight after an ankle injury. When the pain in my right knee became too much to ignore my regular doctor (Dr. Mark Musco) referred me to Dr Workman.
My knee is way better and I have since dropped over 50 lbs and I am more active than I was in my 20s. Hiking, running, cross fit. Everything except softball (not worth the risk).
Dr Workman was completely professional, thorough and competent. I would recommend him to anyone looking for an excellent surgeon and should I ever need help in that area again, I would seek him first.

Dr. Workman is professional, kind and intelligent. I have never had a problem with him or his great staff. I have referred a lot of my friends to see him and they’ve all come back with rave reviews.
I have nothing negative to say.

Can’t believe that there are no reviews for this wonderful doctor yet!
I’ve known Dr. Workman for years and for all of my orthopedic issues, I trust no one but him. He is very knowledgeable, but unlike most doctors, he will not talk down to you and will take the time to make sure you understand all aspects of your injury. He sees local athletes as well as the general public and is the team physician for several schools in the area including UC Berkeley. An excellent surgeon.
I highly recommend this outstanding doctor.