Council Award
Orthopedic Surgeon from Hamilton honoured by Council
Dr. Mohit Bhandari
photo: clAUDIA hung
Dr. Mohit Bhandari, a Hamilton orthopedic surgeon and an internationally recognized leader in clinical orthopedic trauma research and evidence-based orthopedic surgery, was presented with the Council Award at the Council meeting in December. Dr. Bhandari is Professor and Academic Head of the Division of Orthopedic Surgery at McMaster University. He is also the Canada Research Chair in Evidence-Based Orthopedic Surgery with the Canadian Institutes of Health Research. He began his medical studies at the University of Toronto and did his residency in orthopedic surgery at McMaster University. Throughout his career, he has dedicated his work to helping people who suffer from musculoskeletal injuries as a result of trauma. That dedication has seen him take a leading role in evidence-based medicine and he is credited with driving an enormous amount of research that is transforming the care of orthopedic patients. He has more than 500 peer-reviewed publications, led the largest fracture trials in the history of the orthopedic trauma field, and currently leads multiple, multi-national clinical studies involving tens of thousands of patients worldwide. Many of Dr. Bhandari’ s current trials include collaboration with medical centres outside of western nations, enabling a diverse range of surgeons to participate in global research initiatives and leading to local and international medical advancement. His reputation as a collaborator and mentor has seen the growth of an international network of over 300 surgeon collaborators in over 40 countries. Dr. Bhandari has also received praise for his work on two distinct issues: domestic violence and road traffic safety. His research into domestic violence found that the majority of orthopedic surgeons were routinely underestimating the scope of the problem. Dr. Bhandari took the same determined approach when it came to studying injuries from road traffic accidents in developing countries. He currently has studies underway in India, China and various countries in Africa and South America where there is a high incidence of death and morbidity from traffic accidents. Dr. Bhandari has edited his field’ s most important texts on surgical research methods and his work has garnered several awards and honours, including the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons’ Medal for Research and Mentor of the Year awards, the Canadian Orthopedic Association Foundation Research Award, the Clinical Research Award from the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons, and the Order of Ontario.
Issue 4, 2016 Dialogue 15