Dr. Derek M. Kelly
Dr. Derek M. Kelly, a pediatric orthopedic surgeon at Campbell Clinic Orthopaedics and Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital, has been awarded the Special Effort and Excellence Award from the Pediatric Orthopaedic Society of North America.
In addition to practicing pediatric orthopedics and spinal deformity surgery at Campbell Clinic and Le Bonheur, Kelly serves as professor of orthopedic surgery for the University of Tennessee-Campbell Clinic Department of Orthopaedic Surgery and is director of both the Campbell Clinic Pediatric Orthopaedic Fellowship and the Campbell Clinic Assistant Orthopaedic Residency Program.
Hometown: Texarkana, Arkansas
Experience: Medical school, the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences in Little Rock, 2002; orthopedic surgery residency, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, 2007; completed the Dorothy and Bryant Edwards Fellowship in Pediatric Orthopaedic and Spine Surgery at Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children in Dallas, Texas, in 2008.
Kelly is active in a number of professional societies, including the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, American Orthopaedic Association, Scoliosis Research Society and the Pediatric Orthopaedic Society of North America, where he has served on multiple committees and currently chairs the POSNA publications committee. He also serves as the deputy editor for review articles for the Journal of Pediatric Orthopaedics. He is an active member of the International Perthes Study Group, where he serves as the chair of the membership committee. He was a POSNA/EPOS traveling fellow in 2016. He has contributed over 65 peer-reviewed scientific articles to orthopedic literature, as well as numerous chapters to orthopedic textbooks.
What talent do you wish you had? I wish I could speak Spanish. I’m currently trying to learn.
Who has had the greatest influence on you? I have a number of professional mentors, including James Aronson, Dale Blasier and Rick McCarthy in Little Rock, Arkansas; Tony Herring, Steve Richards and Dan Sucato in Dallas, Texas; and Jim Beaty, Bill Warner and Jeff Sawyer in Memphis. My greatest personal influence is my grandmother, Fae Kelly of Texarkana, Texas.
What led you to a career in orthopedics? My first fracture occurred when I was in second grade. I broke my arm and fell in love with orthopedics at that very young age. I began to tell my parents that I was going to be a doctor. To me, a doctor was someone who took care of kids with broken bones. So, that is now what I do.
POSNA’s Special Effort and Excellence Award honors outstanding service along with leadership in pediatric orthopedic research. Tell us a little about the focus of your research. I received this award for my work on the POSNA publications committee for the past three years. I stayed on the committee for two years longer than is typical, to help create a streamlined process to move manuscripts from the various POSNA committees all the way to publication. I also led a team that developed a review article series on a wide range of pediatric orthopedic topics for the Journal of Pediatric Orthopaedics.
My research interests are varied. I have been an author or co-author on topics ranging from scoliosis, pediatric orthopedic trauma, clubfoot and limb deformities, just to name a few.
This is your 10th year at Campbell Clinic. What kind of orthopedic advances have been made over the past decade, and what’s the next frontier? There have been so many. We now have FDA approval for growing spine instrumentation for the forms of scoliosis that develop in young children. The surgical techniques for many of the most common pediatric fractures have advanced, allowing for earlier discharge from the hospital and more rapid return to function. And, we have drastically reduced the time children spend in the hospital after spine fusion surgery for scoliosis.
The future is going to be hard to predict, but the current trend is toward multimodal pain control to decrease the reliance on narcotics. Smaller implants to better match the anatomy of the growing skeleton, and more outpatient surgery for problems that used to require prolonged hospitalization.
What do you consider your greatest accomplishment? My marriage to my beautiful wife, and the happiness and early development of my two wonderful daughters.
What do you most enjoy about your work? I enjoy taking care of newborns with limb and spine deformities.
If you could give one piece of advice to young people, what would it be? Learn early how to be a proficient reader and writer in your language of choice. The basics are the key to any career field. Find a mentor or group of mentors who have attained the level of success you hope to achieve, seek their advice and emulate their actions.
Ocpivia Stafford
Ocpivia Stafford has been promoted to vice president of support and professional services at Methodist South Hospital. In her new role, she will be responsible for the operations of numerous departments: environmental services, food services, laboratory, pharmacy, radiology, rehabilitation, respiratory, security and wound healing services. Stafford, who holds a doctorate in pharmacy, has worked in pharmacy management with Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare since 2006 and most recently served as Methodist South’s director of pharmacy and support services.
The Tennessee Secretary of State’s office has appointed local teachers Brian Huber and Blair Lynch to the Civic Education and Engagement Advisory Committee. Huber teaches at Whitehaven High School, part of Shelby County Schools. Lynch teaches at Elmore Park Middle School, part of Bartlett City Schools.
Rhodes College has awarded Charles McKinney and Marsha Walton its highest faculty honors for teaching and research. McKinney, the Neville Frierson Bryan Chair of Africana Studies and an associate professor of history, received the Clarence Day Award for Outstanding Teaching. Walton, a professor of psychology, received the Clarence Day Award for Outstanding Research and/or Creative Activity.
Carlee Smith
Carlee Smith has been promoted to account assistant at Obsidian Public Relations. Smith worked as a level 1 intern with Obsidian in summer 2017, then returned as a level 2 intern during her last semester at Arkansas State University. In her role, Smith will serve as a support tactician to current account leads, working with clients in several industries.
William Adler has been selected to serve another term as chairman of the Memphis chapter of SCORE beginning Oct. 1. In this position, Adler will coordinate community outreach, recruiting and the chapter’s small business counseling and workshop programs. He has been with Memphis SCORE since 2012. Gary Robinson, who is serving as vice chairman on an interim basis until Sept. 30, will continue in that role, beginning a new term Oct. 1. Jim Frommel will continue as the group’s secretary, and Beverly Anderson remains in her role as treasurer.
ANF Architects won a first place award in Floor Focus magazine’s 2018 Vision Design Awards for its work on The Rosa Deal School of Arts at Christian Brothers University. Architecture and design firms from across North America submitted projects that were judged on innovation and integration of floors with every building space. ANF was honored in the Education category.