When the orthopedic surgeon first came to town to talk about starting a practice at St. Rose Ambulatory & Surgery Center, he didn’t need a GPS app to find Great Bend or the facility. Abelardo Sotelo, M.D., has been here many times before.
“I have been here at least 20 times for pheasant-hunting season,” Dr. Sotelo said. “I know Great Bend very well, and everyone is making me feel welcome. I have a passion for my work, and I love everything about this town. I hope to be here for many years.”
Dr. Sotelo is a general orthopedic surgeon with subspecialties in a variety of procedures, including joint replacement, and hip and hand surgery. He saw a dozen patients Thursday, which was his first “real” day at Central Kansas Orthopaedics on St. Rose’s first floor.
“We can take care of any problems with bones, including upper and lower extremities, the pelvis and back,” Dr. Sotelo commented. “Orthopedics is a broad specialty, and in big cities some surgeons deal only with hands or feet. But in smaller towns, you have to be a general orthopedic surgeon.”
Dr. Sotelo has been impressed with St. Rose’s facility and personnel, including “the administration, the professionals in the operating room and everyone else. I have spent a lot of time with the OR nurses and know they are committed to their patients.”
Dr. Sotelo isn’t surprised by this commitment and work ethic at St. Rose because “Midwesterners are the best people in the country. You learn how to work and start at a young age.”
He gave the example of a family member delivering food to the wheat fields, while holding a baby. When that child is about 5 years old, he is handing tools to the person fixing the tractor.
“They learn from day one,” Dr. Sotelo continued. “It is a different mentality here; you don’t feel entitled to anything, except work.”
Dr. Sotelo came here from the St. Anthony Hospital Orthopedic Clinic in Pendleton, Ore. It is part of the Catholic Health Initiative family, which includes St. Rose. “I think very highly of CHI,” he said.
Before St. Anthony, his orthopedic practice was in Tucson, Ariz., from 1977 to 2006.
Dr. Sotelo earned his medical degree in 1969, graduating summa cum laude from the Universidad Nacional Autonoma De Mexico in 1969. He completed his internship at the Hospital for Joint Diseases in New York, N.Y., in 1973, and his orthopedic residency and fellowship in hand surgery at the same facility in 1976. His Fellowship in hip surgery was completed in 1977 at the Centre for Hip Surgery at Wrightington Hospital in Wigan, Lancashire, England.
Dr. Sotelo is a Fellow in the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons, American College of Surgeons, Western Orthopedic Association, American Academy of Hip and Knee Surgeons, and other organizations. He also is an Overseas Fellow in the British Orthopedic Association.
He and his wife, Sherri O’Connor, have been married for 24 years, and they have a combined family of six children and four grandchildren. O’Connor, who is an OR nurse, will move to Great Bend soon.
Dr. Sotelo’s office hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Thursday. The telephone number is 620-791-6926.