Theodore F. Schlegel, MD

Chief Medical Officer, American Orthopedic Partners     

As the Chief Medical Officer, Ted ensures the delivery of clinical excellence across the AOP organization by providing guidance and subject matter expertise for clinical innovation and the development of best practices. He is passionate about sharing evidence-based treatment protocols and strategic clinical program initiatives with his orthopedic physician peers to help them deliver greater clinical value to their patients.

Having worked in a variety of clinical and academic settings for close to 30 years, Ted brings a deep understanding of the challenges orthopedic surgeons face in a rapidly evolving healthcare environment.  Ted joined AOP from the Steadman Hawkins Clinic in Denver, where he was a founding member. In 2016, he orchestrated a strategic partnership with UC Health and the University of Colorado School of Medicine to create a state-of-the-art orthopedic facility for sports medicine. While there, Ted held the Endowed Chair of the Hawkins Sports Medicine Research Program, served as Fellowship Director for the sports medicine program and was the Director of Research and Innovation for the UC Inverness Center. After retiring from his clinical and surgical practice, Ted was honored with the emeritus associate professor position in the Department of Orthopedics at the University of Colorado School of Medicine.

Ted’s clinical work and research has led to the development of several innovative FDA-approved technologies. He was a co-founder of a medical device start-up company (Opus Medical) that created the first all-arthroscopic knotless rotator cuff repair system and was eventually sold to Arthrocare. He also led the research team as a co-chair of the scientific advisory board to help develop a novel technique for treating partial thickness rotator cuff tears using a patented collagen scaffold (Rotational Medical).

Ted served as a team physician for the Denver Broncos for 18 years. During that time, he led several research projects on sports injuries specific to high-level football players. In 2012, he received the prestigious “Outstanding NFL Team Physician Award”.

As a serial medical business entrepreneur, Ted is dedicated to looking for effective strategies to curbthe soaring costs of healthcare delivery. As Co-Founder of the North American Specialty Hospital (NASH), he helped design an innovative new health care delivery model that has resulted in significant savings for self-funded companies.

Ted earned his Doctor of Medicine (MD) from University of Cincinnati School of Medicine and Bachelor of Arts in Biological Sciences from Brown University. He completed his residency training in orthopedic surgery at the University of Utah, followed by a sports medicine fellowship at the Steadman Hawkins Clinic in Vail, CO.