On May 28, 2020 University Orthopedics, Inc. announced the permanent appointment of Alan Daniels, M.D. as chief of the division of spine surgery. Daniels has filled the role as interim chief since the untimely passing of Mark Palumbo, M.D. in September 2019. Daniels has been associated with University Orthopedics for over a decade, since he began his residency in orthopedic surgery there in 2008. He continued on to complete fellowships in trauma and spine surgery.
Alan Daniels: University Orthopedics Chief of Spine Surgery Division
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University Orthopedics is a Providence, Rhode Island, regional referral center associated with the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University that specializes in orthopedic surgery. President of University Orthopedics, Edward Akelman, M.D., said in the press release from the organization, “In his time as Interim Chief, Dr. Daniels has worked diligently with the Spine Service physicians and we could not be any more thrilled that he has agreed to take on this role permanently…. In addition to the wealth of knowledge and insight he brings to his specialty, Dr. Daniels is committed to a higher level of patient care—a mission that is at the very heart of our practice.”
Daniels told OTW that he hopes to “continue our long tradition of providing the highest quality spine care in Southern New England…. I am fortunate to stand on the shoulders of these giants [Drs. Philip Lucas and Mark Palumbo] as I take the helm.”
The current pandemic has influenced Daniels’ plans, as well. “The lessons of COVID have inspired us to increase our utilization of telehealth, to expand our service hours and locations, and to expand our care by hiring another spine surgeon this summer (Dr. Eren Kuris),” he explained.
Daniels also plans to expand the musculoskeletal medicine component of the spine division to provide a wide range of non-operative solutions to spinal conditions. With the continual introduction of new technology, Daniels is skeptical of the claims having cared for patients with complications from robotic surgery, for example. “Any new technology we utilize at University Orthopedics will have a proven track record of safety and will be used if, and only if, it improves patient care,” he added. He hopes to hire additional minimally invasive spine surgeons to build on the success being demonstrated at the East Bay Surgery Center by Drs. Kleinhenz and Czerwein.
Daniels specializes in complex spinal disorders and also serves as the chief of the Adult Spinal Deformity Service at Rhode Island Hospital and The Miriam Hospital. Additionally, he is the director of Spine Surgery Research and an Associate Professor of Orthopedic Surgery at Brown University’s medical school, and Co-Director of the Brown Spine Surgery Fellowship.
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This is a fascinating development. In my practice we've seen similar outcomes with the revised protocol. The key differentiator seems to be patient selection criteria. Has anyone else noticed the correlation with BMI thresholds?
Great point. I'd push back slightly on the conclusion, the sample size in the cited study is too small to draw population-level inferences. That said, the directional signal is compelling and worth a larger RCT.
We implemented a similar approach last year. Early results are promising but we're still gathering 12-month follow-up data. Happy to share our protocol if anyone is interested.
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