Help Us Get There!
SDSF and Behrooz Akbarnia are pleased to announce the partnership with University of California, San Diego towards the goal of raising funds to establish the Behrooz A. Akbarnia and Nasrin Owsia Akbarnia Endowed Spine Chair in the Department of Orthopedic Surgery. This is the first ever endowed chair for this Department at UCSD. Dr. Akbarnia is extremely honored to have this Endowed Chair in his name, with a focus on building bridges between UCSD and the San Diego Spine Community, as well as to promote research and education.
SDSF is a proud contributor to this effort and along with the UCSD Dept. of Orthopedic Surgery, industry and private supporters, we are almost to the finish line! With a deadline of June 30, 2019 fast approaching, we have raised nearly all of the 2 million dollars required to establish this chair and the goal is within our reach! Any contribution is appreciated to raise the remaining funds. Your support will greatly help to improve the quality of life of patients with spinal disorders.
Click To Support the Akbarnia UCSD Endowed Chair
2018 Annual Report Available
Another year of pursuing the Foundation's research goals led to our presentations at meeting around the world. This year also, we made a decision to initiate a project in collaboration with the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at the University of California, San Diego, and help to establish the first ever UCSD Endowed Chair in spine surgery.
The report details collaboration with Global Spine Outreach in their Mexico Mission and pays tribute to the Research Volunteers who have been so important to SDSF over the years.
This year's report also features new patient stories to personalize the importance of our work. You can read stories from Jennifer, Keely, and Nancy to find 3 very different but equally compelling tales of spinal disorders and treatments.
Our mission is ongoing and the need does not decline. We invite you to download our 2018 Annual Report and ask that you consider the Foundation as a part of your annual giving plan.
Download 2018 Annual Report Here
SDSF News
SDSF is pleased to announce that one of the 2019 Scoliosis Research Society Traveling Fellow Awards goes to Gregory M. Mundis, Jr., MD. This prestigious award is presented annually to 3 junior members of the society along, who will be accompanied by a senior member of SRS. They will travel to Africa in August-Sept. 2019 for 3 weeks and will observe Spine Centers along the way, both giving lectures as well as attending educational forums, surgeries and clinics. These 4 Traveling Fellows will serve as ambassadors for the SRS, buidling long-term relationships with all host surgeons and their teams.
A big congratulations to our past Research Fellow, Pooria Hosseini, MD, M.Sc., who just matched a slot with Saint Louis University's Department of Orthopedic Surgery! Pooria will start his residency in July 2019. Well done Pooria, you deserve it!
SAVE THE DATE!! SDSF will plan to hold it's 2019 San Diego Spine Visiting Professorship Meeting on Friday, July 26, 2019 at the Hilton La Jolla Torrey Pines Hotel. This years's Visiting Professors are:
Michael P. Kelly, MD, MSCI, Associate Professor; Dept. of Orthopedic Surgery, Associate Professor; Dept. of Neurosurgery, Washington University Medical Center, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri.
ALEX VACCARO, MD, PHD, MBA, FACS, Chairman of Orthopaedics, Thomas Jefferson University. Endowed Chair: Richard H. Rothman, Professor and Chairman; Dept. of Orthopaedic Surgery,Elected President of the Rothman Institute, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
In addition to having 2 world-class Visiting Professors again this year, our faculty is becoming increasingly diverse, including both Neurosurgical and Orthopedic Surgery disciplines, as well as having a broad scope of knowledge. This year’s faculty includes past SDSF fellows who have entered academia in Seattle (Rajiv Saigal, MD, PhD, M.Sc.), Philadelphia (Amrit Khalsa, MD) and St. Louis (Pooria Salari, MD). Our Co-Chair, Edward Nomoto, MD, is another past SDSF Fellow who has made marks at Cedars Sinai as well as by a leading surgeon volunteer doing outreach work in Mexico. They all complement our growing number of faculty from Southern California as well as San Diego.
Thank you to all faculty who volunteer their time to educate the Southern California medical and allied health spine community with the goal of improved patient care, and thank you to all Industry Exhbitors who help to make this course possible.
2019-2020 NEW CLINICAL FELLOWS:
SDSF is pleased to announce our future fellows for 2019-2020: Ryan Hoel, MD from University of Minnesota and Ruwan Ratnayake, MD from University of California at Davis. Both new fellows will begin their training on August 1, 2019. We are so pleased to add them to our SDSF Family!
Our Mission
To Foster Excellence in Education, Research and Outreach Related to the Care of Patients with Spinal Disorders, their Families and the Medical Community.
Our Vision
Building Bridges in the Spine Community
Spine Fellowships
Fellowship training is critical to the advancement of spinal care. The Foundation supports the San Diego Spine Fellowship program. All participating surgeons in the program are nationally recognized specialists in both non-operative and operative spine care.
For physicians seeking information about applying for the Fellowship program, please Learn More Here.