Distinctly Montana Magazine

42 D I S T I N C T LY M O N TA N A M A G A Z I N E • W I N T E R 2 0 2 4 - 2 5 Spine Institute brings specialized care to northcentral Montana. Advances in medicine are leading to an era of greater specialized care — from the equipment and techniques used to maximize precision and shorten recovery periods to the training opportunities for providers using these new treatments. Providers are refining their skills and narrowing their focus to subspecialties, and their patients are experiencing the benefits of this evolution in healthcare. "We're seeing the number of these subspecialties increase," says Dr. Greg Tierney, executive vice president of clinical operations at Benefis Health System. "In orthopedics, we are seeing surgeons specialize in total joint replacement and revision, foot and ankle cases, oncology cases, and more. Our next step is to add comprehensive and specialized spine care." In keeping with this movement as well as our commitment to provide cutting-edge care, Benefis is ushering in a new era of spine care, expanding the scope of its specialized orthopedic care to include the Benefis Spine Institute, with Dr. Anthony Russo serving as medical director. Dr. Russo is a board-certified orthopedic surgeon who specializes in surgery of the spine. He has more than 20 years of experience treating complex issues of the cervical, thoracic, and lumbar areas of the spine, including degenerative conditions, deformities, and traumatic injuries. Dr. Russo has been practicing in Montana since 2008, helping fellow Montanans with complex spine conditions receive the state-of-the-art care they need close to home. He is dedicated to staying on the cutting edge of spine care as it evolves, leveraging the latest technology to improve the accuracy of reconstructions, maintain range of motion, and make surgeries safer and less invasive, with a more reliable and less challenging rehabilitation. The Spine Institute will be staffed by an experienced, multidisciplinary team helping patients navigate the entire continuum of spine care, including evaluation, surgical procedures, nonsurgical interventions, rehabilitation, pain management, and more. "Having a complex spinal condition or injury is a scary situation for patients," Dr. Russo says. "My team and I understand these conditions and work to educate patients to try and minimize the anxiety that can accompany the treatment process. We do our best to make it less scary." Dr. Russo graduated magna cum laude from UCLA with a degree in behavioral neuroscience. He received a Naval Health Professions Scholarship to attend The George Washington University School of Medicine, followed by an orthopedic residency at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. He served as an orthopedic surgeon on active duty in the Navy for four years, including a deployment to Al-Asad, Iraq, in support of the Third Marine Expeditionary Unit. Following his service, he completed an advanced clinical experience in spine surgery at the University of Washington and Harborview Medical Center. Benefis Ushers in New Era of Spine Care

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