Sherman S. Coleman, M.D.
Dr. Sherman S. Coleman, a renowned expert on the treatment of tumors and skeletal deformities in children, was internationally recognized for his service to orthopaedics.
Born in Provo, Utah, December 5, 1922, Dr. Sherman S. Coleman was educated in the western and midwestern United States at Brigham Young University and Northwestern University. After an internship at Los Angeles General Hospital and a teaching fellowship in bone and joint pathology at Northwestern University, he joined the United States Navy and practiced orthopaedic and fracture surgery at the Great Lakes Naval Hospital, where he also taught during the Korean War. In 1957, he was a consultant to the United States Veterans Administration Hospital in Salt Lake City and was appointed chairman of the Division of Orthopaedic Surgery at the University of Utah where he developed the orthopaedic residency program. Dr. Coleman also served as chief of staff at Intermountain Shriners Hospital for Children in Salt Lake City from 1957 to 1990. Dr. Coleman remained chairman of the Division of Orthopaedic Surgery until 1981. In addition, Dr. Coleman traveled every month to Juarez, Mexico, where he had established a Shriners screening clinic to identify children needing treatment at the Salt Lake City facility. He continued those visits until October 2002.
Dr. Coleman was president of the American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery from 1973 to 1975 and president of the American Orthopaedic Association in 1977-1978. He was on the Board of Trustees of the Orthopaedic Research and Education Foundation and the Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery from 1980 to 1985. Dr. Coleman was also an active consultant to Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research and the Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery. He taught pediatric orthopaedics instructional courses for the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons for more than 30 years. He was also active with the Pediatric Orthopaedic Society of North America, the American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery and the American Orthopaedic Association, serving as president of all three. In September 2003, Dr. Coleman was presented with the first Sherman S. Coleman, M.D., Humanitarian Award, an award exemplifying Dr. Coleman's excellence in teaching, research, patient care, and commitment.
Dr. Coleman died of cancer on February 24, 2004, in Salt Lake City. "Every honor that can be bestowed upon an American surgeon by his peers has been received by Sherman S. Coleman" - (quote from a Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research special issue dedicated in tribute to Dr. Coleman in 1989.)
