School of Medicine
Department of Orthopaedic Surgery

It's Match Day 2025 and the results are in! A hearty congratulations to all new residents from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine.

We are particularly pleased to announce the following individuals that have matched to the UPMC Orthopaedic Surgery Residency Program:

Categorical (5-Year Track)
Joseph Giusto (University of North Carolina)
Amy Pei (University of Pennsylvania)
Romano Sebastiani (University of Pittsburgh)
Fritz Steuer (University of Pittsburgh)

Research (6-Year Track)
Kenzo Cotton (University of Arkansas)
Mohamad Fares (American University of Beirut)
Isabel Reedy (Medical College of Wisconsin)
Augusto Roca Fernandez (University of Cincinnati)

We also congratulate our PittMed Orthopaedic Surgery Class of 2025:

Fritz Steuer – UPMC
Romano Sebastiani – UPMC
Meredith Flanagan – AGH
Audrey Chang – Vanderbilt
Andrew Frear – WVU (research pathway)

Check out more information on Pitt's Match Day website here.

On March 5, 2025, we had the privilege of hosting Matthew Greenblatt, MD, PhD, for our Orthopaedic Grand Rounds. Dr. Greenblatt is an Associate Professor of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine at Weill Cornell Medicine and Co-Director of the Skeletal Health & Orthopedic Research Program at Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) in New York.

During his time with us, he shared his presentation "A New Local Stem Cell Basis for Bone Formation," and also spoke at Cartilage Day 2025, hosted by our UPMC Sports Medicine team. We appreciate Dr. Greenblatt for joining us and sharing his expertise with our faculty, residents, and researchers.

The Award for Commitment and Excellence in Service (ACES) honors staff who exemplify UPMC’s five core values — Quality & Safety, Dignity & Respect, Caring & Listening, Responsibility & Integrity, Excellence & Innovation. These life changers exceed the high level of service that our patients, members, and the community have come to expect from UPMC.

We are proud to announce that Lindsay Smell, PA-C was awarded the UPMC ACES award this past week. Each year, fewer than 1 percent of UPMC staff from across the health system receive this honor so we are very proud to call Lindsay a part of our Orthopaedic Care Team.

Congratulations, Lindsay!

The Ferguson Laboratory for Orthopaedic and Spine Research is preparing for an exciting transition as it, along with the core Department of Orthopaedic Surgery bench-top laboratories, move into a new, state-of-the-art 25,000 square foot space.

The move is part of the creation and ongoing development of the Bethel Musculoskeletal Research Center at the University of Pittsburgh (BMRC). The University of Pittsburgh and the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery established the Bethel Musculoskeletal Research Center (BMRC), a groundbreaking initiative bolstered by a generous $25 million gift from the Orland Bethel Family Foundation and matched by the University of Pittsburgh. This $50 million endeavor is transforming the field of musculoskeletal research at Pitt and UPMC.

Read more on this story in this edition of UPMC's Physician Resources newsletter.

We are excited to expand access to exceptional orthopaedic care with the opening of our new outpatient center at 95 Leonard Ave, Suite 500, Washington, PA 15301.

This addition builds on the momentum of UPMC Washington and UPMC Greene officially joining the UPMC network, a milestone celebrated in June 2024, by employees, medical staff, and community leaders.

Now open to patients, the outpatient center staffed by Dr. Brandon Tauberg, a specialist in shoulder, knee, and elbow surgery, and Dr. Vivek Sharma, an orthopaedic surgeon specializing in minimally invasive spine surgery, ensuring expert, patient-centered care close to home.

Name: Maria Munsch
Year: PGY6/Superchief
Medical School: The Ohio State University College of Medicine

1. What inspired you to pursue a career in orthopaedics, and what do you enjoy most about the specialty? Are you currently drawn to a sub-specialty (research, spine, hand/foot, sports medicine etc.)

As an undergraduate student, I studied bioengineering at Pitt. Two major foci of the curriculum were biomechanics and medical device engineering, and I found both to be thrilling and intriguing.

Despite having fairly technical academic interests, I also enjoy working with my hands, functioning as part of a team, and interfacing with patients. Naturally, orthopaedic surgery is a perfect fit!

Within ortho, I am passionate about hand surgery and am excitedly awaiting my hand and upper extremity fellowship at Stanford next year.

2. What’s been the most memorable or rewarding experience during your residency so far?

In partnership with Dr. Anderst of the Biodynamics Lab (BDL) and our hand surgeon Dr. Fowler, we were awarded an R21 grant for a study exploring thumb CMC joint biomechanics. It has been so rewarding to work in the BDL during lab year and to witness their progress during my clinical years of residency.

3. How do you see orthopaedics evolving in the future, and what excites you about those changes?

I hope that we will see a trend towards emphasizing all categories of care – patient care, sustainability and care for our planet, self-care, and caring for one another as team members. To some degree, we are all drawn to orthopaedics with the goal of improving our patients’ function and quality of life. I would love to see this theme be more consistently applied on both larger and smaller scales, both by creating and fostering healthy and supportive teams of orthopaedic providers, and by being good stewards of our planet for those who come after us.

4. What do you like most about being a part of PITT-UPMC Orthopaedic Care?

Growing up as a child in Pittsburgh, our city was in a time of transition with an uncertain future. Our universities have played a huge role in Pittsburgh’s renaissance, and Dr. Fu deservedly became a household name due to his dedication to our community by providing it with top-notch, accessible musculoskeletal care.

I’m humbled by the incredible individuals who have come from all corners of the world to join PittOrtho. It is a great honor to spend my formative years in orthopaedics caring for the city that raised me, especially when I can do so alongside some truly brilliant and authentic people.

They say that home is where the heart is - and our home is getting a fresh new look! The BMRC's future lab space is in the beginning stages of demolition, with old carpets being removed from offices and our lab benches being removed and cleared to make room for fresh set-ups and new technology that our researchers need.

Follow our page to keep up to date on how the reno goes - we'll be updating periodically as we move through the process!

#reno #labspace #HGTVwho