Mark Bernhardt, M.D., interim chairperson of the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery since July of 2012, will become the permanent department chair effective June 1, 2013, the School of Medicine and Truman Medical Centers announced.
A member of the Dickson-Diveley Midwest Orthopaedic Clinic since 1990, Bernhardt joined the School of Medicine faculty in 1994 as a clinical associate professor and has served as a clinical professor since 2000.
As department chair, Bernhardt will be ultimately responsible for the School of Medicine’s five-year orthopaedic surgery residency program. Residents receive training through rotations at the area’s leading orthopaedic facilities including Truman Medical Center Hospital Hill, Truman Medical Center Lakewood, Children’s Mercy Hospital, Saint Luke’s Hospital of Kansas City and the Kansas City Orthopaedic Institute.
He earned his medical degree from the University of Kansas School of Medicine and completed his residency training in orthopaedic surgery at the University of Kansas School of Medicine-Wichita/St. Francis Regional Medical Center and Affiliated Hospitals. He completed a fellowship in spine surgery at the Harvard Medical School/Beth Israel Hospital.
Bernhardt has been a member of the Board of Directors of St. Luke’s Hospital of Kansas City since 2007, has served as president of the St. Luke’s medical staff, had membership positions on numerous committees at St. Luke’s, and been a member of the UMKC School of Medicine’s selection council and orthopaedic department research and publication committee.
He has also served as director of the Spine and Deformity Clinic at Children’s Mercy Hospitals and Clinics, and as associate team physician and spine consultant for the Kansas City Royals professional baseball team, assistant team physician for the Kansas City Blades professional hockey team, and associate team physician for the Kansas City Explorers professional tennis team.
