Dr. William B. Kleinman Announces Retirement
Dr. William B. Kleinman announces his retirement from clinical practice at Indiana Hand to Shoulder Center, though he will continue as a part of the IHTSC core teaching faculty. Read his full announcement below.
What a journey it’s been! 48 years in practice in Indianapolis have passed in what seems like a minute.
From the time I was a kid, I wanted to be a doctor. The end of high school brought a choice between pursuing a career as a classical pianist or studying to become a physician. I chose medicine. It was the right choice.
Now looking back a half-century, I was blessed by an unparalleled education and surgical training, at some of the finest institutions in the country.
During my hand fellowship at Columbia, I met a young hand surgeon from Indianapolis, who had come to visit my mentor while in NYC. Jim Strickland was in town giving a lecture to the NYC Hand Society. During his visit, Jim and I spend a lot of time together in my mentor, Bob Carroll’s, OR; we shared real camaraderie. He invited me to visit him and his small practice in Indianapolis (At the time, I was already committed to returning to Denver after my fellowship, to join friends in a hand surgery practice. But I decided to make the trip to Indianapolis anyway).
During my Indianapolis visit, heavy snowstorms blanketed NYC, preventing my return for a week – a week spent in Jim’s office and OR, and meeting his partner, Jim Steichen. Over many dinners, we had in-depth discussions on the potential for the three of us to create a world-class teaching center for hand surgery; our own post-residency fellowship program, right here in Indianapolis.
The rest is history.
As I write this note, 48 years later, Jim and Jim have both passed on. But in the half-century that has passed, our practice has established a reputation as a world-class facility for hand and upper extremity patient care, and a national and international reputation as one of the finest teaching facilities for post-residency hand to shoulder surgery in the nation. The physicians and staff at the IHTSC, and I, are extremely proud of this accomplishment, and eternally grateful to our patients and our community for its continuous support.
As I retire from clinical medicine, we have trained ~300 hand surgeons, many of whom have gone on to become teachers themselves, including many who have established their own post-residency hand surgery fellowship programs around the country.
What a legacy we all have built in 50 years! For me personally, it has all passed in the blink of an eye: ~45,000 surgeries, hundreds-of-thousands of patient clinic visits, scores of published research papers, and hundreds of invited lectures worldwide.
My retirement from clinical practice will finally allow me to get back to serious piano study, although I am not holding my breath for a call from Carnegie Hall! Our children and grandchildren are spread all over the country. We’ll now be able to spend more quality time with them, and more time with friends at our second home in Park City, Utah. I have threatened a couple of my partners with the idea of taking up golf at the age of 78, but they insist it can’t be done. What a challenge! But…maybe I’ll just have to stick to pickle ball and working out at the gym in retirement.
I will continue to teach our fellows as an integral part of our core teaching faculty at the IHTSC. That part of my professional career will not change. While I’ll sorely miss the operating room, and the joy of spending time with patients in the office, it is time to step aside from clinical medicine. As I say to so many of my friends: “If not now…when?”
My profound gratitude goes to all my partners: those deceased, those already retired, those who have come and gone to other arenas, and especially those who fight the good fight every day; who continue to provide the highest level of care to our patients; who tenaciously teach our fellows and residents; who continue the quest for better answers through their research; and who remain committed to exchanging knowledge with our colleagues nationwide.
Carry on!
With respect, and deepest appreciation,
Bill Kleinman
