Fellows in our program care for University of Missouri athletes from 19 sports who compete in the Division I Southeastern Conference (SEC), as well as athletes from the Division II level, intramural club sports and local high school programs. Fellows will learn and work in both an academic and private-practice setting.
Faculty experts in sports medicine and trauma, as well as shoulder-and-elbow specialists, provide mentoring and oversight to prepare fellows for their careers as orthopaedic sports surgeons.
Our program offers vast research opportunities in clinical and basic science. Fellows live in a vibrant college town that provides the entertainment, sports and culture of a larger city while enjoying the relaxed atmosphere and low-cost living that makes housing and transportation convenient and easy.
Goals
Our goal is to train sports medicine fellows to rise to their fullest potential and become future leaders who excel in all aspects of orthopaedic care. Surgeons completing this fellowship will be qualified to enter an academic or private-practice career.
Fellows will be a part of a multidisciplinary team collaborating with specially trained physicians, nurses, therapists, technicians and social workers with the capability of providing total orthopaedic care to the patient.
Exposure
Fellows experience approximately 500 cases with a variety of clinical, surgical and sports coverage scenarios, including:
- Complex knee surgery, including knee dislocations
- Multi-ligament knee reconstruction
- Meniscal transplantation
- ACL reconstruction
- Elbow arthroscopy
- UCL reconstruction
- Articular cartilage and joint preservation
- Shoulder arthroplasty (total and reverse)
- Hip arthroscopy
- Osteotomies
Time demands
During the week, fellows will spend three days in the operating room, one day in clinic with one day of dedicated research time to complete at least one research project and start one long-term project (either clinical or basic science) throughout their tenure.
In addition to the faculty they work with in their rotations, fellows receive treatment referrals from our department’s four non-operative, fellowship-trained sports physicians.
Conference curriculum
Grand Rounds: Twice a month
Sports Medicine Resident/Fellow Core Lectures: Weekly
Sports Medicine Team Case Conference: Twice a month
Sports Medicine Team Journal Club: Quarterly
M&M Conference: Monthly
Research
Fellows have ample opportunities to work with basic and clinical science research projects and are encouraged to participate in research and produce a manuscript at the end of the fellowship year.
A complete research team is available to the fellows. They will have access to the Thompson Laboratory for Regenerative Orthopaedics — a state-of-the-art lab with internationally recognized faculty and staff. Fellows have access to a director of research, an institutional review board (IRB) coordinator, grants and contracts coordinator, research nurses, editors and a medical illustrator.
Meeting opportunities
The fellow will have the opportunity to attend major regional and national orthopaedic meetings hosted by the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine, American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons and Orthopaedic Trauma Association.
Leadership
Fellows are supervised by James Stannard, MD, and Patrick Smith, MD, as well as other experienced and enthusiastic faculty. Fellowship faculty serve as team physicians for University of Missouri basketball, softball, baseball, football, gymnastics, swimming, track, soccer, wrestling and other sports teams.
Stannard is the Hansjörg Wyss Distinguished Chair in Orthopaedic Surgery at MU. His book, “Surgical Treatment of Orthopaedic Trauma,” received the Professional and Scholarly Publishing Award for Excellence in clinical medicine. It is a best-selling book in orthopaedic trauma and published in six languages (English, Portuguese, Turkish, Polish, German and Chinese). Stannard also serves as the editor-in-chief of the “Journal of Knee Surgery.”
Smith performed the very first “all-inside” double-bundle ACL reconstruction — placing two tendon grafts across the knee joint to replace the ACL — which more closely reproduces normal ACL anatomy. He has numerous scientific publications.
