Hand surgeon Dr. Rocio Fuentes Barrow sees a patient at Avera Orthopedics.

Feb. 24, 2022

This paid piece is sponsored by Avera Health.

Five years ago, Avera Orthopedics started a transformation to stay in step with Sioux Falls’ rapid growth along with evolving consumer demands.

“We hoped to have added 10 physicians by 2022, but actually we have more than 20 specialized and subspecialized physicians,” said Ann Heiman, assistant vice president of orthopedics, therapy and sports medicine with Avera McKennan Hospital & University Health Center.

Heiman said growth came in many forms:

• More services fit to exact needs, with subspecialist layers of care.
• More efficient new clinical spaces focused on patient comfort, along with more operating rooms and more clinical support staff.
• Increases in the type of and number of procedures available to best help patients.

Across its system, Avera has more than 50 orthopedic physicians and many advanced practice providers. Communities including Aberdeen, Brookings, Mitchell, Pierre, Sioux Falls and Yankton, as well as O’Neill, Nebraska, and Marshall, Minnesota, all have robust orthopedic service providers with numerous outreach locations.

In addition to population growth, the dynamics for orthopedics are changing. Aging baby boomers and the popularity of athletics and active lifelong lifestyles all contribute. In a wide-ranging health care specialty, Avera added physicians focused on specific disciplines, including:

• Surgeons who focus on subspecialties such as foot and ankle, hand and wrist, spine and spinal injuries, joint replacement and pain management.
• Additional specialists who focus on nonoperative treatment options.
• Sports medicine experts who help athletes achieve top performance, from running farther or faster or getting stronger with evidence-based protocols and biomechanics.
• Specialized orthopedic trauma experts in fracture care who immediately can treat injuries, no matter how severe.

“General orthopedics used to be the norm; we’ve come to realize the necessity for subspecialist care,” Heiman said. “When a patient has pain affecting quality of life, they want tailored care.”

Avera opened its Louise Avenue location in 2019. Avera Orthopedics providers practice there and at Avera McKennan Hospital & University Health Center.

How the growth began — and how it continues 

Bringing in a specialized team of providers – surgeons, nonoperative physicians, therapists and many others – showed many that Avera recognized the needs of the community in the present and the future.

“They had a vision,” said Dr. Matthew Blake, Avera Orthopedics sports medicine and surgery specialist, who joined Avera in 2017. “I joined because Avera knows getting bigger means more than just adding people.”

With Avera’s long history of supporting university and high school athletes, the health system saw this growth area as vital. Physicians like Blake saw the appeal in an on-track system. He wanted to join and share his passion for sports medicine. New beginnings were just about to unfold.

“The Avera Specialty Hospital was an open plot of land when I interviewed,” he said. “To be part of the foundation of a premier orthopedic care team is really rewarding.”

Building a culture of excellence within a culture of excellence 

Joining a health system with Avera’s reputation helped Blake pick Sioux Falls.

“Medical knowledge doubles every year, so being part of a system with research and technology that helps me stay on the leading edge is important,” Blake said.

He realized Avera’s leaders understood how orthopedic care was evolving.

“With the growth in Sioux Falls and the aging population of many of our residents, orthopedics is in high demand,” said Dave Flicek, Avera McKennan president and CEO. “Our expert level of trauma and clinically integrated orthopedic subspecialty services provide a unique opportunity to meet the growing needs of Sioux Falls.”

Charting another future and its changes

Convenience and innovation are not buzzwords for Avera Orthopedics – they’re daily actions.

“We encourage providers to train around the world and bring back best ideas for service,” Heiman said. Examples more common in orthopedic and sports medicine care include:

• Wearable biologic devices that can guide an athlete of any age toward achievement of individual goals or faster injury recovery.
• New robotic surgical approaches that use minimally invasive techniques customized to the patient.
• Nonoperative approaches to care such as platelet-rich plasma and stem cell injection therapies.

“From our front desk staff to our nurses, athletic trainers, technicians in many areas, our schedulers and everyone else – our only focus is orthopedic patients,” Blake said. “We’re all striving for the pinnacle of patient satisfaction.”

Learn more at Avera.org/Orthopedics.