The Lake Tahoe Sports Medicine Fellowship-Barton Health is designed for board-eligible orthopedic surgeons who wish to specialize in Sports Medicine.
We accept two Sports Medicine Fellows for each rotation- August 1-July 31.
HISTORY OF LAKE TAHOE SPORTS MEDICINE FELLOWSHIP
The Fellowship was established in 1987 by Dr. Randy Watson, Dr. Keith Swanson and Dr. Eddie Tapper. Since then, The Fellowship has had approximately 100 Fellows graduate. Prior to 2009, The Fellowship was a six-month unaccredited fellowship. We received our accreditation by the ACGME in 2009 and Barton Memorial Hospital, our sponsoring institution, received their accreditation shortly after that. Currently the Fellowship has eight alumni who reside in Lake Tahoe, the Carson Valley and Reno.
THE BEAUTY OF LAKE TAHOE
Lake Tahoe is called the 'Jewel of the Sierra'. Its crystal clear waters provides endless activities year round. Lake Tahoe has become a year round playground with world class skiing in the Winter, Biking, Hiking, and Water sports in the Summer and Fall. Our fellowship video gives you some idea of the many opportunities Tahoe has to offer.
Snow fall in Lake Tahoe averages 215 inches per year with most ski resorts receiving between 300 and 500 inches per year. With an average of 249 days of sunshine per year, it is ideal for the outdoor enthusiast!
Applicants must be eligible for both a California and Nevada medical license. Fluoroscopy license is required in California. All licensing fees and renewals are paid for by the Fellowship.
ACGME accredited since 2009.
MISSION STATEMENT
Lake Tahoe Sports Medicine Fellowship will strive for excellence in Fellowship training and education for future sports medicine physicians. In addition to concentrating on the ‘Six Core Competencies’, the Fellowship will encompass:
- Education - We will provide the best possible educational experience for both Fellows and Faculty as we empower them to effectively apply their increasing fund of orthopedic knowledge. We will instill the commitment to a lifetime of learning.
- Research - We will stimulate and foster scholarly research in both basic and applied medical science as we continue to create and evaluate new knowledge, particularly as it relates to the cause, prevention and treatment of musculoskeletal conditions.
- Patient Care - We will provide compassionate, contemporary medical care in a professional, effective and cost conscious manner as we encourage a multi-disciplinary team approach to address the needs of the patient as a whole person.
- Community Service - We will engage our Fellows and Faculty in providing both medical care and health education to members of our community who might otherwise remain unattended.
- Personal Development - We will seek to develop in our Fellows, Faculty and staff those qualities that will be critical to leadership as we meet the challenges of health care in the 21st century - integrity, professionalism, scholarship, collegiality, creativity and compassion.
FELLOWS EDUCATION
* Curriculum is structured around the AOSSM sports medicine guidelines. A pre and post test are required.
* Weekly Grand Rounds. Fellows will present a topic every quarter.
* CME credit is available for each hour of conference attended.
* Didactics include Case Conference, M&M and Journal Club.
* Time and expenses for one sports medicine CME conference are provided to each Fellow.
* Anatomy/ Cadaver Labs are available at our Surgical Skills Lab or Lake Tahoe Surgery Center in Zephyr Cove, Nevada.
* Moonlighting is forbidden during your Fellowship.
* Fellows will take approximately four call days per month of independent call at Barton Memorial Hospital only (extra pay is provided).
TRAINING/SURGICAL FACILITIES
Barton Memorial Hospital - South Lake Tahoe, California
Lake Tahoe Surgery Center - Zephyr Cove, Nevada
Sierra Surgery Center - Carson City, Nevada
Carson Valley Medical Center - Gardnerville, Nevada
Tahoe Orthopedic and Sports Medicine Clinics, California and Nevada
Effective August 1, 2020, Lake Tahoe Sports Medicine Fellowship has entered into an agreement with Mammoth Orthopedic Institute and Mammoth Hospital to provide additional educational and surgical skills to the Fellowship. This enhancement will benefit the Fellows overall sports medicine training.
The Fellows will rotate to Mammoth Lakes, California to work closely with Dr. Brian Gilmer and Dr. Timothy Crall. Both orthopedists are Board Certified by the American Board of Orthopedic Surgery and sub specialty certified in Sports Medicine. See their photo's and bios under 'Fellowship Adjunct Faculty'. Housing is provided.
RESEARCH
Fellows are required to participate in ongoing and original research in sports medicine. A Faculty member is available to assist in research and lab activities. Dedicated time is set aside each week for this purpose. The uniqueness of the Lake Tahoe area allows for research into new and forthcoming treatment modalities for recreational injuries, over-use injuries and sports trauma.
TEAM COVERAGE/ RECREATIONAL MEDICAL COVERAGE
Fellows gain experience treating high school, college and recreational athletes.
- Fall - each Fellow covers one local high school football team.
- Winter - each Fellow travels with the US Ski Team to a location around the world and covers local ski events in the Lake Tahoe region.
- Spring/ Summer - recreational and regional sporting events occur all season; some examples of Medical Event Coverage would be the Lake Tahoe Marathon and Hard Rock Half Marathon.
EDUCATION AND GOALS
The Fellowship is focused on the orthopedic surgery sub-specialty fields of sports medicine and sports trauma. The clinical component of the Fellowship includes approximately 10-15 surgical cases per week and two days of clinical examination, diagnosis and treatment in the office setting. Surgical cases are focused on knee arthroscopy, shoulder arthroscopy, shoulder and knee ligament reconstruction, and operative and non-operative treatment of extremity trauma.
Treatment of the aging athlete, including joint reconstruction and arthroplasty is an important component of the Fellowship.
There are six primary teaching attendings that assist and guide the Fellow.
The fellows are evaluated using a Formative Evaluation model. The Fellow learning will be monitored and will be provided ongoing feedback to improve their learning of patient care or other educational opportunities. Fellows will identify their strengths and weaknesses and target areas that need work.
PAST FELLOW STATISTICS
For the last 10 years the following is information regarding 'practice' information from past fellows:
Type of Practice:
- 37.04% Private Practice
- 25.93% Hospital Based Practice
- 11.11% Multi-Specialty Group Practice
- 7.41% Academic
Practice Demographics:
- 55.6% Medium City
- 22.2% Rural/Community Hospital
- 11.1% Large Metro City
- 11.1% Other
Percent of Practice
- 66.7% Sports
- 33.3% General
PAST CASE LOGS
Average Cases for Both Fellows for 12 months:
- 2018-2019 Average 830 cases each
- 2019-2020 Average 544 cases each (lower cases due to Covid lockdown)
- 2020-2021 Average 690 cases each
- 2021-2022 Average 655 cases each
EDUCATIONAL STIPENDS
The Fellowship will pay for one educational course during your 12 months here. Courses like Smith and Nephew and Arthrex are automatically approved as they are paid for by the vendor.
Any other educational material needed by the Fellow will be reimbursed upon approval by the Program Director.
QUALIFICATIONS
* Graduate of a medical school in the United States/ Canada accredited by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME) or ECFMG medical school.
* Graduate of a medical school in Osteopathic Medicine in the United States accredited by the American Osteopathic Association (AOA) and accredited by the ACGME, or soon to be accredited.
* Graduate of an orthopedic residency program in the United States or Canada.
* Complete all three steps of the USMLE prior to the start of the program.
APPLICATION PROCESS
The Lake Tahoe Sports Medicine Fellows participates in the SFMatch (www.sfmatch.org). Application deadline for the 2024/2025 Fellowship is November 30, 2022.
Interview dates for the 2024/2025 Fellowship will be Friday, February 3, 2023 starting at 12:00pm and Saturday, February 4, 2023 starting at 8:00am.
Reception for both interview groups Friday evening, February 3, 2023, 6:00pm at the Beach Retreat & Lodge at Tahoe.
Questions? Contact Bonnie Turner, GME/Fellowship Coordinator: bturner@bartonhealth.org | 530-543-5781.
The use of the SF Match Central Application Service (CAS) is mandatory for both programs and applicants. Applicants are required to have the following documents in order to apply to programs:
- CAS Application
- CV
- USMLE Step 1/COMLEX 1 or equivalent
- Letter of Good Standing *
- Three Letters of Reference
- Distribution list
Fellows Conference Schedule - Tuesdays, 7:00 - 8:00 a.m.
November 2022
| Date |
Name |
| 2 |
Brian Gilmer, MD/Timothy Crall, MD
Orthopedic Topic: Complex Meniscus Tears |
| 9 |
Tyler Williamson, MD
Current Concepts of Meniscus Extrusion |
| 16 |
Robert Rupp, MD/Tyler Williamson, MD
M&M/ER Case Review/Ski Trip Presentation |
| 30 |
Paul Ryan, MD
Research Conference |
December 2022
| Date |
Name |
| 7 |
Jeff Orr, MD
ACL Repair |
| 14 |
John Robinson, MD
Revision Considerations for Failed Anterior Shoulder Instability Procedures |
| 21 |
Daniel Robertson, MD/John Robinson, MD/Tyler Williamson, MD
M&M/Fellow ER Case Presentation |
| 28 |
Paul Ryan, MD
Research Conference |
January 2023
| Date |
Name |
| 4 |
Kyle Swanson, MD
Orthopedic Topic TBD/Clinical Competency Committee CCC |
| 11 |
Tyler Williamson, MD
Rotator Cuff Repair Augmentation: Indications and Techniques |
| 18 |
Robert Rupp, MD/Paul Ryan, MD/Tyler Williamson, MD/John Robinson, MD
M&M/Fellow ER Case Presentation |
| 25 |
Robert Rupp, MD/Paul Ryan, MD
Avoiding Shoulder Surgery Infections/Research Update |
CORE FACULTY
ADJUNCT FACULTY