Issue link: https://viewer.e-digitaledition.com/i/45928
SPECIAL FEATURE PEDIATRIC ORTHOPAEDICS Under the Rainbow E By Alex Strauss VERY YEAR, CLOSE to 12,000 children with musculoskel- etal problems visit University Hospitals (UH) Rainbow Babies and Children's Hospital. Ranked 12th in the nation by U.S. News and World Report, Rainbow's Department of Pediatric Orthopaedics is one of the largest in the nation, with ten pediatric orthopaedic subspecialists, two pediatric orthopaedic certifi ed nurse practitioners and a clinical nurse offering compre- hensive care for both congenital and acquired musculoskeletal problems. These include diseases and disorders of the upper and lower extremities, spinal disorders and deformities, tumors, skeletal dysplasia, sports injuries and trauma. "There are very few pediatric orthopedists in private practice, because you can't provide the highest level of pediatric orthopaedic care in a vacuum," says George H. Thompson, MD, director of Pediatric Orthopaedics at UH Rainbow since 1987 and professor of Orthopaedic Surgery and Pediatrics at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine. "It's the wide variety of pediatric subspecialists at Rainbow that allows for a highly comprehensive patient care experience." An internationally recognized expert in pediatric spinal disorders, Dr. Thompson points out that not only does Rainbow offer the highest level of pediatric orthopaedic services, but also George H. Thompson, MD, leads a team of 10 pediatric orthopaedic specialists, two certifi ed nurse practitioners and a clinical nurse in the Department of Pediatric Orthopaedics at UH Rainbow Babies and Children's Hospital. He is shown here with Connie Poe-Kochert, RN, CNP, planning a spine surgery PHOTO © SMITHBERGER PHOTOGRAPHY, NORTH CANTON