Orthopaedic Sports Medicine
Fellowship Program

The Steadman Philippon Research Institute (SPRI) Orthopaedic Sports Medicine Fellowship Program is an ACGME-accredited one-year program that begins at the end of July and concludes by August 1^st of the following year. The fellows complete rotations with attending faculty that emphasize mentorship and one-on-one interaction with the core sports medicine faculty. This mentorship model is highly emphasized at SPRI, with rotations designed for this type of interaction with the faculty and their teams. During their rotations, fellows become valued members of the clinical teams, providing the highest level of patient care while honing their clinical and surgical acumen. Fellows also gain robust practice management skills by working closely with the faculty's musculoskeletal teams, including physician assistants, athletic trainers and practice managers.

The SPRI Orthopaedic Sports Medicine Fellowship Program aims to:

1. Provide the highest caliber education to train the next generation of sports medicine physicians.

2. Develop sports medicine surgeons that are competent in patient safety, advocacy, health care quality and professionalism.

3. Provide hands-on clinical and surgical training with bioskills and hands-on laboratory experience for fellows to develop top-notch technical skills that emphasize safety, reproducibility and clinical competence, especially in the clinic and operating room environments.
    
4. Provide fellows access to cutting-edge research opportunities in regenerative medicine, biologics, biomotion, biomechanics, anatomy and clinical outcomes assessment. This aim is focused on developing sports medicine surgeons that have a passion for innovation with an emphasis on well-tested techniques that are backed by evidence-based outcomes.
    
5. Develop fellows that are well versed in evidence-based medicine with a keen sense of outcomes assessment, including providing tools to assist their own practice from a quality- and patient-centered approach.
    
6. Fully develop and cultivate a teamwork mentality where the orthopaedic fellows, clinicians, athletic trainers, physician assistants and musculoskeletal professionals work side-by-side to provide the best patient outcomes.
    
7. Promote educational opportunities and inculcate a sense of volunteerism and giving back, not only to the community, but also to our national and international governing societies for the overall betterment of patient care.
    
8. Promote diversity, inclusiveness and a collaborative and professional work environment.

Faculty and Rotation Schedule

• 6-Week Rotation Schedule with Core Sports Medicine Faculty

  • Marc J. Philippon, MD, Co-Director

  • Matthew T. Provencher, MD, MBA, Co-Director

  • Tom R. Hackett, MD

  • Peter J. Millett, MD

  • Armando F. Vidal, MD

  • Leslie B. Vidal, MD

  • Jonathan A. Godin, MBA, MD

• 6-Week Research and Clinical/Operative Exposure Rotation 

• 6-Week Professional Sports Coverage and Clinical/Operative Exposure Rotation

Educational Activities 

In addition to hands-on clinical and operative exposure, the SPRI Orthopaedic Sports Medicine Fellowship Program has a wealth of educational opportunities available to fellows.

Weekly Grand Rounds

• Internationally and nationally renowned faculty are invited to Vail to present in their realm of expertise at these in-person and virtual didactic and seminar case presentation meetings.

Surgical Skills Laboratory

• Fellows in a small group setting have the opportunity to perform cadaver-based surgical training approximately every 6 weeks with core faculty and guest surgical faculty. These hands-on bioskills programs are meant to enrich the fellowship experience and include surgical bioskills exposure to open shoulder stabilization, Latarjet procedure, hip arthroscopy with labrum repair and reconstruction, hip bony resection, open hip FAI procedures, arthroscopic and open elbow reconstructive procedures, knee ligament and multiligament procedures, knee cartilage procedures, meniscal transplantation and osteotomies around the knee. Fellows also have the opportunity to work with our adjunct faculty, including the foot and ankle surgeons, to complete ankle instability repair, ankle arthroscopy, ankle cartilage procedures, Achilles and tendon repairs, and osteotomies about the ankle. In addition, fellows are trained in preoperative planning and surgical execution, particularly in the bioskills lab on total shoulder arthroplasty and knee osteoarthritis management, among other arthroplasty treatments.

Bi-Monthly Journal Club

• Fellows are assigned topical areas that include a deep dive into the classic literature as well as the cutting-edge and latest evidence-based medicine techniques, which are reviewed and discussed.

Professional and Others Sports Coverage

• The SPRI Orthopaedic Sports Medicine Fellowship Program has a robust sports coverage opportunity for fellows. The Steadman Clinic primarily cares for the men's and women's U.S. Ski and Snowboard Teams. Fellows take 1–2 trips per year where they are fully immersed with the athletes, teams, and their medical staff. During these coverage trips, fellows often serve as the primary physician either during training or at a national or international competition. This provides tremendous growth and opportunity for the sports medicine fellow to hone their sports coverage skills through high-end interaction with the athletic trainers and physical therapists and other medical professionals that care for the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Teams. Locations include New Zealand, Australia, Argentina, Chile, Europe, Russia and China. The amount of coverage varies depending on the Olympic year cycle.
   
• ​​​Fellows are also highly integrated into the Vail Valley sports community. This includes year-round local events providing sports coverage alongside our athletic trainers. Lastly, the fellows serve as primary consultants to the local high schools in Eagle County, Colorado. This is a robust experience in which the fellows work closely with the head athletic trainer at two local high schools in the Eagle Valley.

Benefits

• Health: HSA or PPO plan options available
• Health Savings Account
• Flexible Spending Account
• Health Reimbursement Arrangement
• Dental
• Vision
• Basic Life Insurance
• Voluntary Term Life Insurance 
• Short- and Long-Term Disability Insurance
• Voluntary Individual Accident Insurance
• Voluntary Individual Critical Illness Insurance
• Retirement Plan
• Ski Pass Bonus for Fellow and spouse/significant other
• US Ski Team Jackets and Apparel 
• Golf Passes 

Application Process

• Application deadline is November 1st of the application year.
• The SPRI Orthopaedic Sports Medicine Fellowship Program complies with all policies set forth by the SF Match and AOSSM regarding fellowship application, interview, and selection process.