Embargoed for Release: February 14, 2011

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Mininder Kocher, MD Elected to Academy Board of Directors

SAN DIEGO — Orthopaedic surgeon Mininder Kocher, MD, was elected to the Board of Directors of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) at its 2011 Annual Meeting in San Diego. 

“The healthcare landscape is changing very rapidly, and now could not be a more important time to be serve in a leadership capacity with this preeminent orthopaedic organization,” said Dr. Kocher.  “My background in clinical research and other public health issues will bring a unique perspective to this group, and I am honored to serve in this capacity.” 

Dr. Kocher currently serves as an associate professor of orthopaedic surgery at Harvard Medical School in Boston, Mass.  He earned his medical degree from Duke University in North Carolina, and also completed a master’s degree in public health at Harvard.   His research there focused on pediatric hip arthritis, and later won him a Kappa Delta Award, one of the most prestigious musculoskeletal research awards. 

After completing a combined orthopaedic surgeon residency rotating through Massachusetts General Hospital, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Children’s Hospital and Beth Israel Hospital, Dr. Kocher went on to a pediatric orthopaedic fellowship at Children’s Hospital Boston and a sports medicine fellowship at the Steadman Hawkins Clinic, in Vail, Co. 

As a current Board member for the American Orthopaedic Society of Sports Medicine (AOSSM) and a past Board member of the Pediatric Orthopaedic Society of North American (POSNA), Dr. Kocher anticipates his new position on the AAOS Board of Directors will bring even greater collaboration between the three organizations. “This type of collaboration can only unify the orthopaedic specialties as a whole, and ultimately benefit the patients we serve. One of my goals in this position is to continue to nurture and grow the Academy’s relationship with the specialty societies.”

Throughout his medical career, Dr. Kocher has been the recipient of many honors and awards, including multiple mentions on the annual Best Doctors in America list.  He is the author of four textbooks, 41 book chapters and more than 100 peer-reviewed journal articles.  A frequent guest speaker, Dr. Kocher has lectured at 255 meetings and conferences educating his peers nationally and internationally about pediatric sports medicine. 

Dr. Kocher is still active in several other professional societies, including the AOSSM, POSNA and the sports medicine think tank, the Herodius Society.   

When not in the operating room, conducting research or seeing patients, Dr. Kocher enjoys spending time outdoors skiing, kayaking or hiking with his wife Mich, and their five children, and in their barn with their horses, sheep, and barn cats.

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