Scholarly Project Mentorship Appreciation Award

Dr. Mohan Belthur, MD is the Director of Pediatric Limb Reconstruction and Neuro-orthopedics, Division of Orthopedics, Director of the Bubba Watson/Ping 3D Motion Analysis Laboratory at Phoenix Children’s Hospital, and an associate professor of Orthopedics at the University of Arizona College of Medicine-Phoenix. Dr. Belthur has been a scholarly project mentor since 2013 and is currently mentoring seven students on their scholarly projects and many others with secondary research projects for a total of over a dozen mentees from the University of Arizona College of Medicine-Phoenix over the years.

Dr. Belthur attended medical school at Bangalore Medical College, Karnataka, India and went on to complete residency at Seth GS Medical College & KEM Hospital in Mumbai, India, and the West Midlands Orthopaedic Training Program in Birmingham, UK. Dr. Belthur completed fellowships in Pediatric Orthopedics at Alfred I Dupont Hospital for Children - Wilmington, DE USA; (Pediatric Orthopedics and Limb Reconstruction) Sinai Hospital of Baltimore - Baltimore, MD, USA; and (Pediatric Orthopedics and Scoliosis) Baylor College of Medicine, Houston. He is Board Certified in orthopedic surgery in India, UK, Canada and the United States.

Before moving to Arizona to work at Phoenix Children’s Hospital in 2013, Dr. Belthur worked as a Pediatric Orthopedic Surgeon at Sinai Hospital for Baltimore, Maryland from 2010 - 2013. Dr. Belthur’s clinical and academic interests include pediatric limb reconstruction, pediatric musculoskeletal infections, pediatric neuromuscular disorders and 3D Gait Analysis, pediatric foot and ankle disorders, and patient-reported outcomes. He also is involved in Diversity & Inclusion and Global Health initiatives at UACOM-P & Phoenix Children’s Hospital.

He is well-published and has 45 peer-reviewed publications, ten book chapters, and is currently editing a book on “Pediatric Musculoskeletal Infections: Principles & Practice” with Springer Nature Publications for a global audience.

When asked about his favorite or most impactful research project, Dr. Belthur noted his study on “Pathologic fractures in children with acute Staphylococcus aureus osteomyelitis” published in The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery American Volume and can be viewed here. This study was significant as it concluded “Staphylococcus aureus osteomyelitis is a serious infection that may predispose children to pathologic fractures. Protected weight-bearing and activity restriction are recommended in children with Staphylococcus aureus osteomyelitis who have the risk factors demonstrated in this study.”

When asked about his experience serving as a Scholarly Project mentor, Dr. Belthur said, “Mentoring students has been a wonderful experience and I enjoy guiding them and influencing their education. I like helping them with their CVs, develop their research and writing skills, and furthering their interest in pediatric orthopedics.” He went on to explain that while he loves research and clinical work, education is his favorite part of his job. He noted, “Being a doctor means to educate. Being able to work with medical students and pass my knowledge on to them so they can learn and become better than I am, makes my life more interesting and enjoyable.”

Several of Dr. Belthur’s SP mentees submitted quotes below about their experience working with Dr. Belthur on their scholarly projects:

"Dr. Belthur is one of the best research mentors at the College of Medicine-Phoenix. He takes a very active interest in his student's projects and strikes the perfect balance between making sure his students are on track while also allowing them to be independent with their research. Dr. Belthur also does an extraordinary job of helping students find projects that are directly relevant to their interests. It has been a privilege to have Dr. Belthur's guidance in the research world." -Neeraj Vij, Class of 2022

“Dr. Belthur has been a fantastic mentor over the past few years. He is more than just a mentor for research but has also been a guide for my interest in orthopedic surgery. He has been my PI for my Scholarly Project as well as several other research projects. He has taught me how to complete research projects from start to finish and has mentored me into a confident clinical researcher. He is an engaged mentor, invested in research, and provides students with the means to complete impactful research projects.” -Ian Singleton, Class of 2021

“I have known Dr. Belthur since my first year of medical school when my classmate mentioned that he had a research project available. Since then, I have worked with Dr. Belthur on a variety of projects and he has always been available and helpful whenever I required guidance. As an orthopedic surgeon, he is extremely busy, waking up early in the morning and getting home late in the evening, but he is always willing to make time for the students that he mentors. Even on weekends, he will help out with editing papers, sending emails, or engaging in Zoom meetings to help us with our projects. He consistently sends us information for various conferences that we can submit abstracts or posters and encourages us to share our research findings with the academic medical community. I am grateful to have a research mentor like Dr. Belthur and working with him has allowed me to develop my own passion for medical research and I hope to continue this throughout my career.” -Roy Bisht, Class of 2021

Dr. Belthur lives with his wife, a software engineer who runs her own business, and 14-year-old daughter. He mentioned if he wasn’t a pediatric orthopedic surgeon or educator, he would probably be an archeologist. His hobbies include practicing and teaching yoga at the Center for Human Living, running, and biking. He is also a second-degree red belt in Tang Soo Do, a karate-based South Korean martial art, and is currently training for his black belt. He is very interested in leadership and recently completed the Faculty Leadership Development Program in 2020 at UACOM-P.

We are so grateful for student-focused and committed mentors like Dr. Belthur. Mentorship is the most important part of our program and provides an invaluable educational experience for the medical students at the University of Arizona College of Medicine-Phoenix. If you are interested in becoming a mentor, please contact Stephanie Rosen at sschott@arizona.edu.