MOORESVILLE, Ind. – Robert Malinzak, MD, an orthopedic surgeon with
Franciscan St. Francis Health’s Center for Hip and Knee Surgery, has been chosen to participate in this year’s
prestigious Insall Traveling Fellowship.
Only four knee replacement surgeons in the world are chosen
annually for this honor, sponsored by The
Knee Society.
The fellowship is
named for John Insall, MD, whose legendary contributions to knee surgery were
based on an academic pursuit of excellence in research, surgical techniques and
patient care. Inherent in his life's work was the importance of educating knee
surgeons throughout the world.
The chosen surgeons visit
internationally recognized joint replacement and knee surgery centers.
Malinzak’s month-long fellowship will begin Sept 30 in Boston and end
Oct. 31 in Denver, with stops in Charlotte, N.C.; Philadelphia; Ontario; New
York City; Columbus, Ohio; Chicago and his own facility in Mooresville, Ind.,
which annually is a featured location for the fellows.
Malinzak and his colleagues in Mooresville have hosted Insall
Fellows ever since the fellowship was created 10 years ago.
The candidates must undertake
a project during the four-week course of their travels and subsequently present
their data at selected international meetings and for publishing in appropriate
journals.
Malinzak is not the first from his practice group, St. Francis Medical Group Joint Replacement Surgeons, to be chosen as an Insall Fellow. Michael
Berend, MD, served his fellowship in 2004.
Malinzak is a graduate of the Duke University School of Medicine
where he also completed his orthopedic internship and residency training. He is
board certified in orthopedic surgery, with special interest in shoulder, hip
and knee replacements.
Malinzak is a former team physician for athletes at Duke University
and North Carolina Central University and has served as consultant for the U.S.
Soccer teams. He is the author of the acclaimed orthopedic board review book First
Aid for the Orthopaedic Boards.
He and his partners perform more than 2,500 knee, hip and shoulder
replacements each year. Their work at the Center for Hip and Knee Surgery has
been ranked number one in Indiana for joint replacement surgery five years in a
row (2007-2011) by HealthGrades, a leading independent health ratings
organization.
The center also has received a five-star rating for total hip and
knee replacement for nine consecutive years (2003-2011) and earned
HealthGrades’ Joint Replacement Excellence Award for 2011. The ratings are
based on patient mortality and complication rates.
