Educational Goals

The goals of the Hand Fellowship Program at Vanderbilt Orthopaedic Institute will be to provide a comprehensive review of hand surgery and provide extensive exposure to the surgical treatment of hand and upper extremity problems. The program is well-versed in the multiple subspecialty areas of hand and upper extremity surgery including congenital hand, rheumatoid arthritis, reconstructive surgery, post traumatic surgery, neurological conditions, microsurgery, elbow surgery and shoulder surgery. The cooperative efforts between the orthopaedic and plastic surgery divisions provide adequate exposure to hand, upper extremity, and microvascular surgery. Following the completion of the fellowship, the hand fellow should be well-versed in the proper recognition, management, and disposition of patients with various hand and upper extremity conditions.

Education Methods

Vanderbilt Orthopaedic Institute Hand Fellowship Program is a 1-year program. The hand fellow will be responsible for the care and management of the attending hand surgeon's patients and emergency room patients from adults to children. While rotatiing between the attendings, the fellow obtains a comprehensive approach and overview to upper extremity disorders including hand, wrist, elbow, and shoulder surgery. the fellow will work directly with each attending and will be involved in the non-operative, pre-operative, operative, and post-operative management of outpatients and inpatients. The fellow participates in performing surgery on those patients evaluated in clinic and will also participate twice a week in Hand Conference and once a month in Journal Club.

Our Fellows

 Contact us!

Vanderbilt Orthopaedic Institute
Medical Center East, South Tower, Suite 3200
Nashville, TN 37232-8828

Karen Shelton
615-343-2524
615-343-5427 (fax)
karen.shelton@vanderbilt.edu