Historic Timeline
Since establishing a dedicated Orthopedics Department more than a century ago, Mount Sinai Health System has discovered new ways to treat patients with debilitating musculoskeletal conditions. Each decade marks an innovation that has improved the practice of orthopedic medicine and established us as a leader in the field.
1910 – The Orthopedics Department became part of the Outpatient Department; we conducted 2,015 consults during the first year under the leadership of Philip W. Nathan, MD.
1911 – Established orthopedic inpatient service and expanded the department.
1937 – Published the first edition of Edgar Bick’s Source Book of Orthopaedics, a classic in the field that went through several editions.
1938 – Graduated our first resident, Samuel Rubert, MD.
1939 – Appointed two orthopedists, Robert K. Lippmann, MD, and Seth Selig, MD, to the Hospital. They served together until Selig's death in 1941. Dr. Lippmann continued as Director until late 1960.
1946 – Established a pediatric orthopedic clinic.
1949 – Created a separate ward for pediatric orthopedic cases.
1949 – Adapted our residencies in surgery and surgical subspecialties to conform with changes in residency requirements by Boards. The residency in Orthopedics is three years long.
1960 – Robert S. Siffert, MD, was appointed Director of the Department; when the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai was created, he served as the first Professor and Chairman of Orthopedics.
1961 – Established a weekly Amputee Rehabilitation Clinic within the Orthopedics and the Rehabilitation Medicine Department.
1966 – Dedicated the Robert K. Lippmann Orthopedic Research Laboratory.
1975 – Established a sports medicine program.
1983 –Created the Robert K. Lippmann Chair in Orthopedics.
1986 – Michael Lewis, MD, was appointed the first full-time Chair of the Department.
1989 – Dedicated the Leni and Peter W. May Department of Orthopedics, thanks to a gift from Mr. and Mrs. Peter May on June 7.
2008 – The National Football League (NFL) and NFL Players' Association announced a Joint Replacement Benefit Plan and picked the Mount Sinai Orthopedics Department as one of two New York City hospitals and the 14th nationwide to do joint replacement surgery.
2009 – Was designated as one of five centers around the country by the NFL for the surgical and non-surgical treatment of spine issues.
2010 – Opened the Mount Sinai Joint Replacement Center. The site has an educational component: the Samuel and Ethel LeFrak Center for Patient Education. The Center has high-definition TV monitors for video presentations on joint replacement and other surgical information, and computers with information on knee and hip education, safety, and rehabilitation.
2012 – Opened an inpatient unit for spine surgery patients called the Spine Inpatient Center; it is a joint effort of the Orthopedics and Neurosurgery Departments.
2015 - Mount Sinai Names Leesa Galatz System Chair of Orthopedics