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Meet Dr. Jonathan Frank

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Today we’d like to introduce you to Dr. Jonathan Frank.

Thanks for sharing your story with us Dr. Frank. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I grew up in West LA to a mixed culture family – my mother an Iranian immigrant who fled her country as result of the revolution and my father a third-generation US citizen. I went on to attend UCLA for college, earning dual degrees in History and Molecular, Cell and Developmental Biology, as well as minoring in Near Eastern Languages and Cultures.  As an undergraduate, I quickly got involved in research and was fortunate enough to be a co-author on several studies published in highly regarded scientific journals. Upon completion of my undergraduate studies, I conducted an additional year of research in the Department of Neurology at Cedar Sinai Medical Center. I further pursued my research interests while attending the UCLA School of Medicine where I earned multiple distinctions and presented my research in both regional and national orthopedic conferences.

I completed orthopedic residency at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago where I participated in sports team coverage for several local college and professional teams including the Chicago White Sox, Chicago Bulls and Roosevelt University Men’s and Women’s basketball. As a resident, I was selected for the American Orthopaedic Association Emerging Leaders Forum and have published studies in multiple areas of sports medicine with a focus on the hip and upper extremity.

I then completed a fellowship in Orthopedic Sports Medicine at the world-renowned Steadman Clinic in Vail, CO where I helped treat athletes across the country from the NFL, NBA, MLB and MLS. I continue to take care of elite athletes as a member of the medical staff for the US Ski and Snowboarding Teams. My research has been presented at regional, national, and international orthopedic conferences, winning several awards including the prestigious Mark Coventry award. I have authored and co-authored multiple book chapters and scientific articles and am currently a scientific reviewer for top peer-reviewed scientific journals.

Has it been a smooth road?
My most cherished childhood memories involve the frequent household building projects that my family and I would engage in. From building a porch to renovating a room, my grandfather, uncles and I would work together to complete the task and then marvel at what we had accomplished. My greatest regret during this period, however, was that my father was unable to participate in our building projects due to disabling chronic back pain. Also because of his condition, my father was unable to work, leaving my family struggling to cope financially. This left my mother, and the salary she earned as a preschool teacher, as the sole source of income for a family of five. As a result, my siblings and I were expected to work to provide for ourselves including our educational fees. Moreover, I watched my grandfather and role model slowly lose his ability to walk and, as a result, his zest for life. Watching the terrible effect these debilitating illnesses had on the two most important men in my life, and the financial and emotional consequences of their illnesses to me and the rest of my family sparked my inspiration to pursue a career devoted to promoting and maintaining people’s mobility and, thus, quality of life.

We’d love to hear more about your business.
In my role as the Director of Joint Preservation I focus on minimally invasive, arthroscopic surgery of the knee, shoulder, hip, & elbow. My unique background includes extensive training and expertise in cartilage restoration, complex multi- ligament knee reconstruction, joint preserving osteotomies, as well as the treatment of complex shoulder conditions. My goal has always been to get my patients back to their active lifestyle prior to their injury. I also work closely with a group of physicians working on cutting edge biological treatments for orthopedic injuries. Through this collaboration, patients can first exhaust a plethora of non-surgical options before undergoing surgery. In the end, the overall goal is to help patients return to the activities they enjoyed prior to injury, whether that is playing sports, hiking the many paths found in and around LA, or simply being able to return to work and provide for their families.

Any shoutouts? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
I don’t believe that I could have made it to where I am today without the support from my friends and family. They have watched me through my successes as well as my struggles and have truly contributed to not only my professional life but also my personal life in so many different ways. I have been fortunate enough to train and work alongside so many brilliant and skilled physicians in orthopedics who have not only helped me develop the skills necessary to be a surgeon but also the qualities to be an empathetic person. I remember my first interactions with Dr. Bach at Rush University where I did my residency when I was just a visiting medical student. He took me aside one day and talked to me about why he loved orthopedic sports medicine. Not only was he able to help patients, but over time he helped their children and their children’s children. He felt honored that he was entrusted with the well-being of someone’s family.

Here was someone who was at the pinnacle of his career and had served as the president of the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine and team physician for the Chicago White Sox and Bulls, yet to him the greatest part of his career was the impact he had on the people he treated. I’ve made this lesson the cornerstone of my practice – feeling honored and humbled to be able to care for each and every patient I see.

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