UH Rainbow Babies & Children's Hospital Chief Pediatric Orthopaedic Surgery Honored with Distinguished Achievement Award

Dr. George Thompson Receives Recognition from the Pediatric Orthopaedic Society of North America in Barcelona, Spain

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The Pediatric Orthopaedic Society of North America has honored University Hospitals (UH) Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital pediatric orthopaedic surgeon George H. Thompson, MD, with a Distinguished Achievement Award for his work and contributions in the field of pediatric orthopaedic surgery.

George H. Thompson, MD

Dr. Thompson, Division Chief of Pediatric Orthopaedic Surgery at UH Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital and UH Cleveland Medical Center and Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery and Pediatrics at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, received the award at the first combined meeting of the European Pediatric Orthopaedic Society and the Pediatric Orthopaedic Society of North America in Barcelona, Spain on May 3, 2017.

This award commemorates Dr. Thompson’s extensive career, which has led to innovations in surgical techniques to prevent or decrease blood loss and to make surgery safer for children, according to Randall E. Marcus, MD, Charles H. Herndon Professor and Chairman, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, UH Cleveland Medical Center and Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine. “Because of the techniques he’s developed and published, he has changed the lives of tens of thousands of children worldwide,” said Dr. Marcus.

Dr. Thompson has served as Division Chief of Pediatric Orthopaedic Surgery at UH Rainbow since 1987. He graduated from Oklahoma State University in 1966 with a Bachelor of Science in Physiology and received his medical degree from the University of Oklahoma School of Medicine in 1970. He completed a surgical internship and orthopaedic surgery residency at the University of California Los Angeles Medical Center from 1970 to 1972 and 1974 to 1977, followed by a fellowship in pediatric orthopaedics at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, Ontario in 1978.

In addition to his leadership role in pediatric orthopaedic surgery, Dr. Thompson is the Co-Chair of the Salter Society, Co-Editor of the Journal of Pediatric Orthopaedics, President/CEO of the SICOT Foundation, Chairman SICOT-USA; Chairman, Shriner’s Hospital for Children Medical Advisory Board; and President-elect International Federation of Pediatric Orthopaedic Societies. He is the past President of the Ohio Orthopaedic Society from 1997 to 1999, Pediatric Orthopaedic Society of North America [POSNA] from 2002 to 2003, and Scoliosis Research Society [SRS] for the terms 2006-2007 and 2007-2008.

He is the past Deputy Editor of Pediatric Orthopaedics for the Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery American from 2003 to 2005. He has received numerous honors and awards, including the American Orthopaedic Association (AOA) North American Traveling Fellowship in 1979, an endowed chair from his institution in 2006, the POSNA Arthur H. Huene Award in 2008, the 2013 SRS Lifetime Achievement Award, the University Hospitals Distinguished Physician Award in 2014, and he was the first recipient of the Endowed Chair in Pediatric Orthopaedic Surgery (2016). He has had 167 visiting professorships or guest lectureships.

Dr. Thompson’s major interests include spinal deformities, trauma, hip abnormalities, and foot deformities. He has published 176 peer-reviewed articles, 91 chapters in textbooks, and edited five textbooks. He has presented more than 1,000 regional, national, and international lectures.

Originally published as UH News Release dated May 8, 2017.