Hilo's hometown orthopedic surgeon — literally

Raised in Kea‘au and trained at the University of Hawai‘i's medical school, the University of Chicago (hip & knee reconstruction), and Charité Berlin (trauma), Dr. Morton came home with one conviction: Hawai‘i Island families deserve the same surgery Chicago gets. He proved the point by performing the Big Island's first robotic-assisted joint replacement at Kona Community Hospital in March 2022 — and then brought a permanent Pacific Bone & Joint clinic to Hilo itself.

Serving Hilo, Kea‘au, Pahoa, Puna, Volcano, Honoka‘a, and Waimea:

Clinic care stays in Hilo — and now, so does most surgery. Dr. Morton performs robotic hip and knee replacements at Hilo Community Surgery Center using Stryker's Mako robot, so Big Island patients no longer need to fly to O‘ahu for a routine joint replacement. Each Mako hip and knee starts with a CT scan of your own joint — no IV contrast needed — which becomes the 3D model your cup and stem sizes, leg length, and offset are planned on before surgery day. Complex reconstructions and revision work are still planned deliberately, sometimes at O‘ahu facilities through the interisland program: telehealth and Hilo visits before, one planned trip for surgery, then recovery and follow-up back home. West Hawai‘i patients are usually seen at the Kona clinic on Hualalai Road instead — same surgeon, same phone number.