Jeremy Smith, M.D., New Division Chief of Surgical Spine at Hoag

Jeremy Smith, M.D., an orthopedic surgeon specializing in the latest treatment techniques for degenerative spinal conditions, is the new Division Chief of Surgical Spine at Hoag Orthopedic Institute (HOI) in Irvine, California.

“Hoag Orthopedic Institute is proud to congratulate Dr. Smith on his appointment as our Division Chief of Surgical Spine,” said Steven L. Barnett, M.D., chief medical officer of HOI. “We have complete confidence that Dr. Smith will continue to uphold HOI’s unparalleled standards in surgical spine care.”

Dr. Smith graduated magna cum laude from The University of California, Los Angeles and then earned his medical degree from New York Medical College where he received Alpha Omega Alpha honors. After graduating first in medical school, Dr. Smith went on to do an orthopedic residency at The University of California, Irvine, where he was chief resident in his fifth. Following this, he traveled to Philadelphia, where he undertook an orthopedic and neurosurgical spine surgery fellowship at the Rothman Institute at the Thomas Jefferson University Hospital.

OTW asked Dr. Smith about his interests, both in terms of his day-to-day responsibilities but also for the contributing to the long term improvement of spine surgery generally. “I have a strong interest in clinical research and have many ongoing prospective studies currently underway.”

“Trauma and spinal cord injury research inspired me to pursue a career as a spine surgeon and it was my primary interest early on. My research focus now centers mostly around degenerative and deformity principles. Sagittal alignment reconstruction, motion preservation, and minimally invasive surgery are just a few of the topics we currently are focusing on.”

“The volume of complex spinal surgery being performed at Hoag Orthopedic Institute is some of the highest in the country. Being able to use the clinical data we generate as a center gives a unique perspective not many can produce. Combining our clinical database with other large centers nationwide will help advance the field.”

And, finally, Dr. Smith talked about his longer term objectives at Hoag. “I am most excited about building the Hoag Orthopedic Institute Spine Center. Our goal is to create a multidisciplinary effort to treat spinal pathology both surgically and non-surgically using evidence-based practices. Defining treatment algorithms and applying them in a spine center setting will help improve the quality, cost and efficiency of spine care. My near-term goal is to partner with our neurosurgeon, Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (PM&R), anesthesia and medicine colleagues to begin building the infrastructure for this center.”