ASPEN/VAIL, Colorado, Dec. 01, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Steadman Clinic’s newest location in Aspen will open its doors to patients for the first time on Tuesday, Dec. 1. The new joint venture between The Steadman Clinic and Aspen Valley Hospital begins operation in the Aspen and Roaring Fork Valley and will feature five surgeons dedicated to the Aspen office who will join a rotating group of acclaimed orthopaedic surgeons from The Steadman Clinic in Vail.
“After months of planning and dedicated work by the teams at The Steadman Clinic and Aspen Valley Hospital, we are very much looking forward to greeting patients in Aspen on Dec. 1,” said Dan Drawbaugh, CEO of The Steadman Clinic and Steadman Philippon Research Institute (SPRI).
The Aspen office will be undergoing some initial renovations, but those modifications will not impact the physicians’ work or the clinic’s patient care in any way.
Appointments to see The Steadman Clinic’s doctors in Aspen can be made by visiting thesteadmanclinic.com or by calling the Aspen office directly at (970) 476-1100.
The Aspen location extends the premier and world-class orthopaedic care that The Steadman Clinic has provided for decades in Vail, alongside its other locations in Frisco and Edwards. The new center in Aspen will benefit from having five noted surgeons dedicated to full-time work at that location.
“The best way to serve our patients in the Roaring Fork Valley, together with our excellent partner Aspen Valley Hospital, is through a staff of gifted orthopaedic surgeons dedicated to our practice there, combined with a team of physicians rotating in from The Steadman Clinic,” said Dr. Marc J. Philippon, managing partner of The Steadman Clinic and co-chair of SPRI. “Our commitment is to extend access to the excellent care that we have provided at The Steadman Clinic for many years.”
Heading up the Aspen staff will be Dr. Jared Lee, who will serve as Medical Director for the new location. “We’re working to establish this clinic in Aspen and to make sure that its quality and its patient care are at a very high level and consistent with the level of The Steadman Clinic in Vail,” said Dr. Lee. “We want our patients to benefit from the same feel, the same quality, the same responsiveness that all of our patients have received at The Steadman Clinic since Dr. Steadman founded it many years ago.”
Dr. Lee will be joined in Aspen by Dr. Thea Wojtkowski, Dr. Waqqar Khan-Farooqi, Dr. Dustin Anderson and Dr. Joseph Ruzbarsky on a full-time basis. Rotating in from The Steadman Clinic’s headquarters in Vail—in addition to Dr. Philippon—will be Dr. Thos Evans, Dr. Jonathan Godin, Dr. Tom Hackett, Dr. Raymond Kim, Dr. Peter Millett, Dr. Matthew Provencher, Dr. Kavi Sachar and Dr. Randy Viola.
A well-established Aspen physician, Dr. Wojtkowski is also a very familiar name in the Aspen sports medicine community. She currently serves as medical director for Aspen Valley Ski and Snowboard Club, caring for the valley’s up-and-coming snow sport athletes.
Dr. Khan-Farooqi, another renowned Aspen surgeon, is eager to begin his association with his new colleagues from The Steadman Clinic.
“They are world-class surgeons who always seek better and more efficient ways to serve their patients,” said Dr. Khan-Farooqi. “They are focused on patient outcomes, and they do research on their patients at both the bench and the bedside, which translates to improved outcomes. They set the standard, so I am excited to be part of a clinic that brings that vision of world-class, outcomes-oriented care to our valley. I’m sure my new associates in Aspen will concur with me when I say that I am eagerly looking forward to being part of such an innovative team.”
One of the newest Aspen associates mentioned by Dr. Khan-Farooqi is Dr. Anderson, who specializes in pain management and rehabilitation. Dr. Anderson will add additional depth and expertise to The Steadman Clinic, Aspen.
The group also includes a pair of surgeons who are products of The Steadman Clinic’s world-renowned fellowship program. Dr. Lee was a member of the 2012-13 class of fellows, and Dr. Ruzbarsky completed his fellowship this past spring. Their addition to the staff of surgeons continues the tradition of Steadman fellows returning to The Steadman Clinic and SPRI after learning and fine-tuning their skills under the mentorship of Steadman’s esteemed team of world-class surgeons, scientists and clinicians.
“As two of our former fellows, both Dr. Lee and Dr. Ruzbarsky have formed strong working relationships with the team at The Steadman Clinic,” said Drawbaugh. “Their familiarity with our culture and mission will be invaluable as they help to expand our acclaimed surgical and clinical programs to Aspen.”
The Aspen-based orthopaedic surgeons for The Steadman Clinic are:
Dustin Anderson, MD
Dr. Dustin Anderson graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a BS in Communication Arts and attended the Medical College of Wisconsin, earning his MD in 2015. Following an internship at the Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare St. Joseph Program in 2016, Dr. Anderson went on to serve as Chief Resident and complete his Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation residency and Pain Medicine fellowship at the University of Colorado School of Medicine in 2019. Dr. Anderson is board certified in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation and has served as team physician for the University of Denver Athletics (Division I women’s soccer, volleyball, basketball and lacrosse) and worked with elite athletes at the University of Colorado Champions Center in Boulder and UCHealth as the official healthcare partner of the Denver Broncos, Colorado Rockies, Denver Nuggets, Colorado Avalanche and other local sports teams.
Waqqar Khan-Farooqi, MD
Dr. Khan-Farooqi graduated from Stanford University with honors and a BS in Biological Sciences and a minor in Political Science. Dr. Khan-Farooqi attended Stanford Medical School, graduating with an MD in 2000, and found his calling in orthopaedic surgery, particularly in the care of fractures and their aftereffects. He completed his residency training in Seattle at the University of Washington, Harborview Medical Center, and affiliated hospitals where he worked with giants in the fields of trauma and foot and ankle surgery. Dr. Khan-Farooqi continued his foot and ankle subspecialty training with a focus on the care of athletes at OrthoCarolina in Charlotte, N.C.
Jared T. Lee, MD
Dr. Jared Lee served his fellowship in advanced orthopaedic sports medicine at The Steadman Clinic/Steadman Philippon Research Institute in 2013. Prior to his fellowship, Dr. Lee completed his residency in the Harvard Combined Orthopaedic Residency Program, serving as Administrative Chief Resident at Massachusetts General Hospital. He attended the University of Washington for medical school. Dr. Lee played collegiate football at Brigham Young University, where he acted as team captain for the 2000 season. He graduated magna cum laude from BYU in 2001 and was honored as one of six Division I college football players to receive the National Football Foundation and College Football Hall of Fame post-graduate scholarships. He played in the NFL as a free agent for the Cincinnati Bengals.
Joseph J. Ruzbarsky, MD
Dr. Ruzbarsky comes to Colorado via the Northeast. He is originally from Scranton, Pa., and attended college at the University of Pennsylvania where he competed for four years on the men’s varsity track and field team, primarily as a javelin thrower. He graduated summa cum laude with a B.A. in Biology in 2010 and was elected to the school’s chapter of the Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society. He remained in Philadelphia at the University of Pennsylvania for medical school as a 21st Century Scholarship recipient, graduating in 2014 as a member of the Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Society. Following medical school, he moved to Manhattan for his surgical internship at New York-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center and his orthopaedic surgery residency at the Hospital for Special Surgery. He then moved to Vail for his sports medicine fellowship at The Steadman Clinic and SPRI where he provided medical coverage for the US Ski and Snowboard teams and remained for a second fellowship in Vail focusing on hip preservation with Drs. Marc Philippon and Joel Matta.
Thea Wojtkowski, MD
Dr. Wojtkowski graduated from Stanford University with honors in Humanities and a BS in Biology. After graduation, she remained at Stanford an additional year researching heat shock proteins and their relationship with Type I diabetes. Dr. Wojtkowski completed her medical training and orthopaedic residency at the University of Washington. Within her residency, Dr. Wojtkowski did extensive orthopaedic trauma training at Harborview Medical Center, a world-renowned orthopaedic trauma center. She has practiced in Hawaii, North Carolina, Washington and Colorado. Her focuses include care of the hip, orthopaedic trauma care and prevention. She serves as medical director for Aspen Valley Ski and Snowboard Club.