Introducing Dr De Vos – A Leading Pretoria-Based Orthopaedic Specialist
Dr Johannes Nicolaas De Vos is a leading orthopaedic specialist who, today, is perhaps best known as the founder of Pretoria Hip, Knee and Shoulder Surgeons. The unit is located close to the Life Wilgers Hospital in Lynwood Ridge, and its primary role is to perform the various surgical procedures required for the repair or replacement of damaged hip and knee joints. He established the new unit in 2014, when joined by former associate, Dr Toni Monni, who had been awarded a fellowship in arthroplasty surgery from the UK in the previous year.
A graduate of the University of Pretoria, he gained his primary degree (MBChB) in 1980, and completed his internship at Nelspruit Hospital in the following year. He then moved to a private practice in Secunda, where he provided a GP service until June 1986, after which he took up the post of Medical Officer in Kalafong Hospital.
It was in 1987, however, when accepting a registrar’s post at the University of Pretoria, that the career of Dr De Vos was destined to take a new turn. The knowledge and skills gained in the university’s department of orthopaedic surgery was to provide the foundations for a future as a specialist within a field that has long been faced with a growing demand.
It was1991, however, that was to mark the beginning of a new era for the doctor. This was a year marked by a number of prestigious professional achievements. These included a master’s degree (MMed), a Smith and Nephew Travelling Fellowship, and the 1991 George Dommisse Prestige Award for “Best Registrar” University of Pretoria. His highly successful year peaked when, in December, he was awarded a Consultant’s post within the department and at HF Verwoerd Hospital.
While much of his time during this phase of his career was devoted to the treatment of trauma cases, following a move to the Life Wilgers Hospital, he became more involved in elective surgical procedures, and it is these that have become his primary focus since the establishment of Pretoria Hip, Knee and Shoulder Surgeons. A director of the hospital for some 14 years, his administrative experience has also proved invaluable to the establishment and day-to-day operation of the new unit.
In addition to his responsibilities as a leading surgeon, Dr De Vos, in his role as an orthopaedic specialist, remains actively engaged in research. Much of his research has focussed on the regulation of anticoagulant therapy for the extended prevention of venous thromboembolism, and resulting deep vein thromboses or pulmonary emboli, as complications of total hip and knee replacements. In between his surgical duties and his research activities, he has also found time to deliver a dozen papers on the international scene, and more than 50 to local audiences.
A member of the South African Orthopaedic Association, he has held the positions of honorary treasurer, first and second vice president, and finally, president of the association. Other professional bodies of which he is a member are the SA Medical Association, Knee Society, Arthroplasty Association and the Society of Hip Arthroscopy, as well as its international equivalent.
The efforts of orthopaedic specialist, Dr De Vos, have established Pretoria Hip, Knee and Shoulder Surgeons as a centre of excellence, that attracts many referrals, both local and international.