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ORTHOPEDICS
9 milestones for ASC
spinal surgery: 2021
By Marcus Robertson
Samuel Joseph, MD, performed two different mile-
stone spine procedures covered by Becker's ASC Re-
view last year.
Here are nine ASC spine procedure "firsts" Becker's ASC
Review covered in 2021:
1. Jaime Gasco, MD, performed El Paso, Texas's first
outpatient lumbar spinal fusion in a surgery center, ac-
cording to a Dec. 8 LinkedIn post.
2. e Hoag Orthopedic Institute Surgery Center in
Marina del Rey, Calif., was the first ASC in the U.S. to
perform a biportal endoscopic spinal surgery, according
to a Dec. 1 news release emailed to Becker's. Hooman
Melamed, MD, performed the procedure.
3. e first outpatient awake spinal fusion in Florida's
Tampa Bay area was reportedly performed by Samuel
Joseph, MD, of Joseph Spine Institute, according to a July
22 news release.
4. Scott Stayner, MD, PhD, in January performed Min-
nesota's first spinal fusion using the Minuteman Fusion
Plate, according to a June 10 news release.
5. Chattanooga, Tenn.-based Center for Sports Medi-
cine and Orthopaedics performed its first cervical disc
replacement. e procedure was performed by Alex
Sielatycki, MD.
6. Spine surgeon Mark McFarland, DO, was reportedly
the first person to perform an outpatient lumbar fusion
in Virginia's peninsula region with Medacta's MySpine
patient-specific navigation system.
7. e first endoscopic microdiscectomy procedure at
DuPage Medical Group's new ASC in Westmont, Ill., was
performed by Ashish Patel, MD.
8. One of the first outpatient prone transpsoas proce-
dures in the U.S. was performed by Dr. Joseph of Joseph
Spine Institute in Tampa, Fla., according to an April
1 news release.
9. On March 3, Jeffrey Carlson, MD, performed one of
the first three-level lumbar fusions done at an ASC in the
U.S. at Newport News-based Coastal Virginia Surgery
Center, according to a March 11 news release. n
Ex-anesthesiologist
pleads guilty in death of
orthopedic surgeon
By Alan Condon
A
former anesthesiologist on Dec. 3 pleaded guilty to invol-
untary manslaughter of an orthopedist who had surgery at
Rodeo Drive Plastic Surgery Center in Beverly Hills, Calif.,
in 2017, according to NBC Los Angeles.
Five notes:
1. Before the surgery, Stephen Kyo-Sung Kim, MD, said he inject-
ed himself with Demerol stolen from various surgery centers and
left the operating room to inject himself with more Demerol and
Toradol during the procedure on 71-year-old orthopedic surgeon
Mark Greenspan, MD., according to the article.
2. Mr. Kim said that he did not recall a conversation on the morn-
ing of the surgery that the procedure would be done under a
local anesthesia with intravenous sedation rather than general
anesthesia, which was used, according to the report.
3. Dr. Greenspan went into cardiac arrest after Mr. Kim adminis-
tered a lethal dose of Demerol and another medication to the
patient after surgery, according to the report. Mr. Kim said he
unsuccessfully tried to intubate Dr. Greenspan several times.
4. Mr. Kim agreed to surrender his medical license and never work
in the medical field again.
5. He was taken into custody after his guilty plea and is expected
to be sentenced in December 2023 to two years in prison, which
he will already have served by that time. n
ASC owner runs for US House
By Patsy Newitt
A
l Olszewski, MD, orthopedic surgeon and ASC owner, is
running for a Montana congressional seat, the Helena
Independent Record reported Nov. 23.
Dr. Olszewski began his practice as a partner at Whitefish, Mont.-
based Flathead Valley Orthopedics in 1998, according to his
campaign website.
He served Montana at the state and federal levels as a healthcare
adviser since 2009, and in 2014, he was elected to the Montana
House of Representatives.
He also served in the state Senate from 2016-20. n
