Among the most common patient complaints — whether they are seeing their primary care doctor, are visiting urgent care, the ER or another provider’s office — are orthopedic problems. Approximately one in three adults received orthopedic care in the U.S. in 2021, statistics show. Due to a shortage of specialists, however, it can be difficult to refer a patient quickly to a sports medicine or orthopedic specialist.

Fortunately, the growing orthopedic program at Boca Raton Regional Hospital, part of Baptist Health, is making it easier to see an expert in the field. Under the leadership of orthopedic surgeon Anthony Miniaci, M.D., deputy chief medical executive of Baptist Health Orthopedic Care, the program has a new facility as well as orthopedic specialty clinics. Dr. Miniaci and his long-time friend and colleague John Uribe, M.D., chief medical executive of Baptist Health Orthopedic Care, are also overseeing the integration of all orthopedic care throughout Baptist Health, from the Florida Keys through Palm Beach County, and transforming it into a destination academic medical program.

The most recent addition to Baptist Health Orthopedic Care in Palm Beach County is the Toby and Leon Cooperman Medical Arts Pavilion at Boca Raton Regional Hospital. It is equipped with sophisticated diagnostic and treatment technology, five operating rooms, exam rooms and space for overnight stays, if necessary.

“Our new facility is amazing. And, it’s convenient for patients. But it’s not just about opening a new location to improve access to care,” Dr. Miniaci says. “It’s also about following evidence-based protocols, having experts who are current with the newest advances, developing innovative ways to treat patients and handling the most-complex cases. Patients should be able to visit any Baptist Health orthopedic facility and receive the same standard of care.”

In addition to surgical options, Baptist Health Orthopedic Care offers a full range of services that include sports medicine, physical therapy, rehabilitation and exercise, pain management and biologics.

“The orthopedic world has really developed itself into specialty services,” Dr. Miniaci says. “And, about 80 percent of orthopedics is now outpatient. Our new facility is geared to care for patients in this modern era, with clinic space and outpatient surgical suites, where we do everything from robot-assisted joint replacement surgery to shoulder repair and foot and ankle surgery.”

The Toby and Leon Cooperman Medical Arts Pavilion houses centers of excellence for joint replacement, foot and ankle surgery and upper extremity needs (hand, wrist, elbow, shoulder). “We have seen growth of nearly 100 percent in the last two years and with our new facility, we will be able to accommodate even more patients,” Dr. Miniaci says.

A factor in the projected growth for Baptist Health Orthopedic Care, Dr. Miniaci says, is the continued development of Baptist Health’s academic and clinical affiliations program with Florida International University Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine and Florida Atlantic University Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine.

More than 100 new medical school graduates, including many from FIU and FAU, will begin residency training at Baptist Health hospitals this July in internal medicine, general surgery, neurology, diagnostic radiology and Baptist Health’s already existing family medicine program. Trainees in advanced specialization fellowship programs in orthopedic surgery, sports medicine and interventional radiology will be matched later this year.

Research and innovation are also important initiatives, Dr. Miniaci says. “Baptist Health is investing enormous resources into data capture so that we can collect and analyze the data necessary to evaluate our research,” he says. “Working together with top scientists is crucial for basic science research and as we continue to identify leaders in our areas of interest and build our relationships with them and academia, we will be able to expand our existing outcomes-based research program.”

Nicknamed MacGyver after the very resourceful fictional TV character, Dr. Miniaci is known for improvising quick, innovative solutions to problems in the operating room and in life. He is also recognized for developing improved shoulder implants and bone-preserving, less invasive techniques.

He is a regular speaker at international and national physician education conferences and is president-elect of the American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons (ASES). The invitation-only organization is made up of leading national and international orthopedic surgeons who specialize in surgery of the shoulder and elbow.

Dr. Miniaci, like many Baptist Health physicians, has treated numerous professional athletes and served as the head team physician for the Cleveland Browns and an orthopedic consultant to the Toronto Blue Jays. Baptist Health Orthopedic Care is the sports medicine provider for professional sports teams, collegiate and high school programs and major sporting events.

Patients don’t need to be serious athletes to receive high-quality care, Dr. Miniaci promises. “Whether I’m doing a rotator cuff repair on a high-level athlete or an electrician who is trying to reach overhead, I am doing the best quality-care that I can. I don’t compromise on that.”

Additionally, orthopedic care has transformed in recent decades. “Orthopedics traditionally has always been the carpenter of medical practice,” he says. “I want us to be leading edge in the things that can delay surgeries or joint replacements. We have many more promising treatments coming.”