David Beard, MD

About David Beard, MD

Dr. David Beard is a board-certified orthopaedic surgeon. He specializes in taking care of adults, teenagers, and children who have a sports injury or condition, including knee and shoulder problems. Dr. Beard also takes care of fractures and hip injuries.

Dr. Beard performs a variety of orthopaedic surgeries, such as:

• knee arthroscopy for numerous conditions, including meniscal tears, ligament tears, and loose bodies
• hip replacement, using the traditional posterior technique
• knee replacement
• ACL reconstruction
• rotator cuff and other shoulder repairs
• surgical treatment of common fractures around the shoulder, hip, and knee

Dr. David Beard grew up in Fort Collins, CO. He completed his undergraduate studies at CU Boulder, graduating in 1986 with a Bachelor of Science in Molecular, Cellular, Developmental Biology. He was commissioned as an Ensign US Navy Reserve Officer in 1987 with the Health Professional Scholarship Program. Dr. Beard received his medical training from Creighton University in Omaha, NE; following in the footsteps of his father Dr. Donald Beard (Class of 1959), the founder of Fort Collins Youth Clinic, and his brother Dr. Douglas Beard (Class of 1986), an orthopaedic spine surgeon with Front Range Brain and Spine Center. Upon graduating in 1990, Dr. Beard began active duty in the United States Navy as a Lieutenant in the Medical Corps.

Dr. Beard completed his surgical internship at the Naval Medical Center, San Diego, in 1991. He continued his military training at the Naval Undersea Medical Institute at Submarine Base New London, CT, and participated in Diving Medical Officer Training at the Naval Diving and Salvage Training Center in Panama City Beach, FL. He gained experience in radiation safety for submarine duty, hyperbaric chamber operations for diving injuries, and became certified as a Navy diver for open and closed circuit, mixed gas, and hard hat diving. Upon returning to San Diego, Dr. Beard served as Diving Medical Officer for the Navy SEALs at the Naval and Special Warfare Center in Coronado, CA. He was entrusted with additional duties to the Naval Special Warfare Group One and the Navy Parachute Team. During his collaboration with the Navy SEALs, Dr. Beard was responsible for the medical care of high-risk training in Naval Special Warfare. He also participated in submarine deployments in Pearl Harbor, HI and medical missions in Central America in support of Naval Special Warfare operations. He completed parachute training at Fort Benning, GA, and cold weather medicine and high altitude medicine training at the US Marine Corps Mountain Warfare Training Center in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Dr. Beard was awarded the Navy Commendation Medal after serving as Medical Department Head at Naval Special Warfare Center.

From 1994 to 1998, he fulfilled his orthopaedic surgery residency at the Naval Medical Center San Diego. This included outservice training in trauma at the University of California San Diego and University of California Davis, orthopaedic pathology at the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology, and sports medicine at the Cincinnati Orthopaedic Center.

In 1998, Dr. Beard became the Director of Orthopaedic Surgery at the Naval Hospital at the Naval Air Station in Lemoore, CA. There he received training for non-aeronautical personnel in the F/A 18 Hornet. He was awarded his second Navy Commendation Medal for duties at NAS Lemoore. After ten years of active service and six years in the reserves, Dr. Beard was honorably discharged from the US Navy, attaining the rank of Commander.

Upon fulfilling the duties of his naval career, Dr. Beard moved back to Fort Collins, CO and joined the Orthopaedic Center of the Rockies in October of 2000.

Dr. Beard specializes in shoulder, knee, and hip disorders. He performs shoulder and knee arthroscopy, ACL reconstructions, rotator cuff repair, knee and hip replacement surgery. Dr. Beard is married to his college sweetheart, Heather, and has three grown children, Emily, Sarah, and Will. When he’s not working, he enjoys spending time with his family, biking, skiing, snowmobiling, and white-water rafting.