Dr. Richard Jelsma is honored and grateful to have been voted by the public as the Best of Texoma in Orthopedic Surgery in 2018 and 2019. He is a double board certified, fellowship trained orthopedic surgeon specializing in sports medicine, shoulder, and knee surgery. He is board certified by the American Board of Orthopedic Surgery in both orthopedic surgery and the subspecialty of sports medicine. He is a member and instructor for the Arthroscopy Association of North America, and the American Orthopedic Society of Sports Medicine. He has been practicing and providing high quality care to the patients in Texoma since 2000.
Dr. Jelsma has trained at some of the best universities and with some of the best surgeons in his field. Dr. Jelsma grew up in Louisville, Kentucky, then attended Dartmouth College. He graduated summa cum laude, phi beta kappa, and won the Haseltine award given to the most outstanding student in chemistry and physics. He then went to medical school at Columbia University in New York City, and completed his residency in orthopedic surgery at Columbia New York Orthopedic Hospital. He also spent a year doing basic science research on articular cartilage at the Orthopedic Research Laboratory at Columbia, where he focused on studying biomarkers of cartilage metabolism and injury. Finally, he was accepted into one of the most prestigious fellowships in sports medicine. He spent one year at the American Sports Medicine Institute with Dr. James Andrews, who is the most renowned sports medicine orthopedic surgeon. There he worked with many professional athletes and teams, and continues today to work with Dr. Andrews through his association with the Andrews Sports Medicine Institute at Children’s Hospital in Frisco. Dr. Jelsma created and is the medical director of the Children’s sports medicine program in the north Texas and Texoma area. He also remains at the forefront of cutting-edge technology in his field, specializing in minimally invasive arthroscopic surgery of the shoulder and knee, robotic joint replacement surgery, and treatment of appropriate ligament and cartilage injuries with orthobiologics. He also teaches other physicians minimally invasive arthroscopic surgical techniques. Dr. Jelsma’s training has allowed him to become a very experienced surgeon, having performed over 15,000 surgeries in his career to date.
Although Dr. Jelsma’s training often focused on the needs of professional athletes, it was his fond personal memories of playing sports in high school and college that motivated him to focus on helping athletes of all levels, from high school seniors to senior citizens. He says, “It doesn’t matter if you are an athlete on a team, or a senior citizen having increasing difficulty with activities of daily living. Any patient can improve their health if they take an active role. I’m here to be my patients’ partner in the process.” He enjoys spending time finding out about his patients’ problems, and then collaborating with them to develop a personalized treatment plan. For this reason, if you make an appointment to see Dr. Jelsma, you will see him, not a physician’s assistant or nurse practitioner. He will explain in simple to understand terms what the problem is, and the options for treatment, discussing all viable non-surgical treatments first, with surgery being the last option whenever possible. His staff focuses on the patient, he tries to keep patient wait time limited, and he opened a new office in 2019 to improve his patients’ comfort. When you call for an appointment, there is no navigating frustrating phone trees, as his staff personally answers the phone. Dr. Jelsma knows no one enjoys going to the doctor, so he tries to make the experience as pleasant as possible.
While his educational and professional accomplishments are impressive, he is particularly gratified when other physicians and healthcare providers in the community seek out his care. It is humbling when another medical professional who understands healthcare puts their trust in him as a physician:
Dr. Hunter Richmond, ENT surgeon and CrossFit competitor, says, “Rich (Dr. Jelsma) has been my friend forever. He’s a hard-working physician that really knows orthopedics. When I tore my rotator cuff in a motorcycle wreck, he was my logical choice to address the issue. I wouldn’t go to anyone else. He’s trying to make everything better for patients so that they have a good outcome.”
Another physician who sought Dr. Jelsma’s help is pediatrician Dr. Rebecca Rue, who says, “A skiing accident left me with a torn ACL. It was a difficult injury, but Dr. Jelsma repaired my knee. so that I was able to return to a normal lifestyle. I’m currently training for a half marathon. Expect excellent results under Dr. Jelsma’s amazing care.”
Physical therapists work extremely closely with orthopedic surgeons. Several knowledgeable physical therapists have chosen Dr. Jelsma as their orthopedic surgeon. Bo Mosby chose Dr. Jelsma as his surgeon after years of seeing his patients. Bo says, “Dr. Jelsma’s patients always have great outcomes, and are able to return to function quickly.” So, when Bo broke his leg skiing, and his son tore his ACL playing football, he sought Dr. Jelsma’s help. He says, “I have nothing but great things to say about Dr. Jelsma and his staff, and I think the people of North Texas are lucky to have a doctor of his caliber available.”
Jon Poe, who has been treating patients in North Texas over two decades, chose Dr. Jelsma to care for his son when he tore his ACL, MCL, and meniscus cartilage playing football. He says, “During my son’s senior year of high school, he suffered a season-ending injury on the football field. He tore his ACL, MCL, and medial meniscus. Dr. Jelsma did a fantastic job with his ACL reconstruction and my son is back to an active lifestyle that includes running and cycling. Not only is Dr. Jelsma’s skillset top notch, his decision-making process allows for the best possible outcomes.”
Jay Estes, yet another skilled physical therapist, chose Dr. Jelsma to take care of his son. He says, “With my son being an athlete at Pottsboro High School and Dr. Jelsma being the team doc there, it was an easy choice picking him to do my son’s ACL surgery. But Dr. Jelsma’s position with the high school was only a small part of that decision. As a physical therapist, I’m very familiar with Dr. Jelsma’s work, and have seen patient after patient who he has performed surgery on thrive returning to their sport. My son’s knee was no exception. He has returned to sports with no issues and has full confidence in his knee. Dr. Jelsma is passionate about what he does and truly cares for his patients and their successful return to their activities.”
Chiropractor and competitive water skier Stephanie Stange came to Dr. Jelsma when she tore her rotator cuff in a waterskiing accident. She says, “I injured my rotator cuff in an unfortunate water ski accident this spring. I consulted Dr. Jelsma because he is highly regarded by his peers and has expertise in shoulders. As a chiropractor, a mom and amateur athlete my priority was a full recovery. I had complete confidence in Dr. Jelsma. He was knowledgeable and thorough in his explanation of the surgery and rehabilitation to follow. Under his care and guidance, I am thrilled to be back to the active lifestyle I enjoy.”
Finally, Dr. Jelsma enjoys treating families, and feels honored when a fellow physician trusts him to care for their family. Among the over 15,000 surgeries he’s performed during his career include the multiple surgeries he’s performed on the Hodge family. Dr. Brad Hodge and his wife, Tawni, have seven sons and Dr. Jelsma has helped them all stay active on the sports field. When Tawni slipped on some ice and broke her ankle, “I knew that if he could keep my athletes on the field, he could fix my ankle,” says Tawni. “I’m married to a doctor, and I say with absolute confidence that Dr. Jelsma is excellent at his job and inspires confidence. He’s one of the kindest people I know, and he has a great reputation.”
Dr. Jelsma has been dedicated to providing the highest quality of medical care to both his patients and the community at large. He founded the first sports medicine program in the Texoma area when he arrived in 2000. This program and Dr. Jelsma, who is the medical director, are now affiliated with Children’s Hospital and the James Andrews Sports Medicine Institute, helping to provide trainers and services to over 20 local schools in our community. The services cover treating more than just orthopedic injuries. For instance, the student athletes in our community now have access to state-of-the-art concussion testing and treatment. This did not exist here when he arrived. In addition, since 2000 Dr. Jelsma has run a sports injury clinic in his office on Saturday mornings during the football season to treat any injured athletes.
Beyond sports medicine and orthopedic surgery, Dr. Jelsma was one of a small group of dedicated physicians who founded and built Heritage Park Surgical Hospital, which in 2015 partnered with Baylor and was renamed Baylor Scott and White Surgical Hospital at Sherman. He has been a board member since inception. It has been the highest rated hospital by CMS for quality and patient satisfaction in Texoma every year of its existence, thanks to an incredible staff, dedicated physicians, and a culture focused solely on providing the best possible care to our patients and community. It consistently achieves a 5-star rating, which puts it in the top 5% of hospitals nationwide. It has won numerous other awards for patient care as well. Finally, Dr. Jelsma is a proud supporter of the House of Eli, which is a locally run non-profit organization dedicated to helping troubled young men get on the right path to become a productive, responsible adult.
Dr. Jelsma is accepting new patients. He tries to get people with immediate need seen as rapidly as possible. Call 903-868-8800 to make an appointment. Our new office in Sherman is located in the Crossroads Medical Building, 204 Medical Drive, Suite 100. It is located on the south side of Sherman, at the intersection of Highway 75 and FM1417 (exit 56), on the northwest corner. www.richardjelsmamd.com
