FARMINGTON – Dr. Kenneth D’Amato has joined the medical staff of Franklin Orthopedics and Franklin Memorial Hospital, said Richard Batt, the hospital president.

D’Amato has been an orthopedic surgeon at hospitals in Pennsylvania, Maine and West Virginia. Most recently he served as chief of the Department of Surgery at Davis Memorial Hospital in Elkins, W.Va. He has nearly 20 years experience in general orthopedics, and his professional interests include adult joint reconstruction, spine surgery and hand surgery.

After receiving his bachelor’s degree in zoology from the University of Maine, he studied at University of Health Sciences in Kansas City, Mo., receiving his D.O. degree in 1977.

He served a one-year internship at the former Osteopathic Hospital of Maine in Portland and was medical director of Eagle Lake Health Center, a family practice facility, until 1981.

He then did a five-year orthopedic surgeon residency at Memorial Hospital in Detroit and completed clinical fellowships in hand surgery and pediatric orthopedics. He has provided lectures at medical seminars on many orthopedic treatments including vertebroplasty, a new procedure used to stabilize spinal fractures and alleviate back pain.

He is a member of the American Osteopathic Association and is certified by the American Board of Independent Medical Examiners, as well as the American Osteopathic Board of Orthopedic Surgery.

“The time was right to return to Maine,” he said. “I’m excited about joining this orthopedic practice and becoming part of the greater Farmington community.”

Franklin Orthopedics’ full range of orthopedic services includes arthroscopy and fracture care, as well as joint reconstruction, sports medicine, and physical therapy and rehabilitation services.

He and his wife, Sharon, live in Industry. They’re the parents of three grown daughters.