Dr. Choll Kim graduated cum laude from Harvard Medical School and completed his fellowship training in complex spine surgery at the Mayo Clinic. In addition, he is double-board certified by the American Board of Orthopaedic Surgeons and the American Board of Spine Surgery.

Dr. Kim is an internationally recognized expert in the field of computer-assisted minimally invasive spine surgery. He has trained and continues to train specialists throughout the country on the safe and effective application of state-of-the-art techniques using image guidance and navigation technologies.

Dr. Kim utilizes a broad range of minimally invasive treatments to effectively treat all aspects of complex spinal disorders, including herniated disks, spinal stenosis, adult scoliosis, spondylolisthesis, traumatic injuries, tumors, and infections throughout the entire spine from the neck to the low back. He is one of only a handful of surgeons in the world to master laser endoscopic spine surgery (LESS), a state-of-the-art minimally invasive procedure that effectively treats herniated disks, radiculopathy and sciatica. The LESS procedure can be performed under local anesthesia, in a same-day setting and with a small stab incision that is covered with a bandaid.

A leader in his field, Dr. Kim is the founder and past-president of the Society for Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery (SMISS), the founder of Minimally Invasive Spine Centers of Excellence (MIS-COE), the chair of the MIS Committee for the International Society for the Advancement of Spine Surgery (ISASS), the director of the Advanced Spine & Joint Institute at Alvarado Hospital and an associate clinical professor at the University of California, San Diego.

Furthermore, Dr. Kim is a a past voting member of the FDA Orthopedic Devices Panel, which reviews all new spinal technologies. He has designed minimally invasive instrumentation used by surgeons around the world. Dr. Kim is an active member of the North American Spine Society (NASS) and the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS), and a fellow of the Scoliosis Research Society. Dr. Kim has over 200 publications and presentations.

Kendra graduated as valedictorian of her class at Western University of Health Sciences in 2020. Before this, she attended the University of California Santa Barbara where she volunteered at a local hospital, assisted in molecular microbiology research and wrote for her college’s science and technology newspaper. She enjoys problem solving both in clinic and in the operating room where she works as Dr. Kim’s primary surgical assistant.

Alex is a board-certified Physician Assistant who graduated Summa Cum Laude from Point Loma Nazarene University. She then completed her training at UC Davis and earned her Physician Assistant Certificate in 2021. She has previously worked as an Athletic Trainer and has a strong passion and interest for orthopedics. She enjoys serving others and is always looking for ways to better care for her patients.