Dr. O’Brien is a Board-Certified Orthopaedic Surgeon, fellowship-trained in shoulder & elbow surgery. He is a Professor of Clinical Orthopaedics, Chief of Shoulder & Elbow Surgery, and the Program Director for the Orthopaedic Surgery Residency Program at Tulane University. He has an active clinical practice at the Tulane Institute of Sports Medicine on the Tulane campus uptown, Sports Medicine Plus in Lakeview, and at Tulane Lakeside Hospital in Metairie.

In addition to the time he spends with patients in the clinic or operating room, Dr. O’Brien regularly lectures and teaches courses internationally and throughout the United States, and has published hundreds of articles on topics such as shoulder and elbow reconstructive surgery, arthroscopy of the shoulder and elbow, rotator cuff surgery, shoulder instability, total shoulder replacement, reverse shoulder replacement, total elbow replacement, sports injuries and surgical techniques, and fracture care in both adults and children. Dr. O’Brien is closely involved with several professional orthopaedic organizations, internationally and locally.  He is on the Board of Directors for the Arthroscopy Association of North America (AANA), an international professional organization of more than 5,000 orthopaedic surgeons and medical professionals committed to advancing the field of minimally-invasive orthopaedic surgery. He is a member of the Board of Directors for the Southern Orthopaedic Association (SOA) and Louisiana Orthopaedic Association (LOA), where he was recently elected to the office of Second Vice President by the LOA. Dr. O’Brien is an Active Member of the American Shoulder & Elbow Surgeons (ASES), a society of leading national and international Orthopaedic Surgeons who specialize in surgery of the shoulder and elbow, where he has served as Chair of several committees and is a member of the Neer Circle.

Dr. O’Brien is a past President of the Greater New Orleans Orthopaedic Society, and serves as a Team Physician for Tulane Athletics, NOLA Gold Rugby and Brother Martin High School.  He has been selected annually by his peers as a Top Doctor in Orthopaedics in the Greater New Orleans area and in the State of Louisiana.