G. Dean Harter, MD

G. Dean Harter, MD joins Cleveland Clinic Indian River Hospital as Medical Director of Orthopaedic Surgery. Dr. Harter is a board-certified orthopaedic surgeon who specializes in the treatment of shoulder and elbow conditions including fractures, arthritis and rotator cuff disorders.  He also has extensive experience in hip and knee reconstruction surgery. Dr. Harter has over 35 years of experience as an orthopaedic surgeon.

Before joining Cleveland Clinic Indian River Hospital, Dr. Harter was the clinical associate professor at West Virginia University Medicine, Parkersburg Orthopaedics.  Prior to that, Dr. Harter served as Chief of the Geisinger Shoulder and Elbow Institute at Geisinger Medical Center in Pennsylvania.  His experience also includes managing a successful private practice, meritorious service for the United States Navy as a decorated flight surgeon, and industry consultant for medical device development with DJO Global.

Dr. Harter is a graduate of the West Virginia University School of Medicine followed by internships at both the Portsmouth Naval Hospital and Naval Aerospace Medical Institute.  He completed his residency in Orthopaedic Surgery with Geisinger in Danville, Pennsylvania, and Pediatric Orthopaedic Surgery at the Alfred I. DuPont Institute in Wilmington, Delaware.  Dr. Harter also completed a fellowship in elbow surgery at the Mayo Clinic.

He serves on the American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons Membership and Abstract Review Panel committees, as well as the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons Orthopaedic Knowledge Update committee.  He is also currently a reviewer with the Journal of Shoulder & Elbow Surgery.  

Dr. Harter actively participates in clinical trials and research projects including a multi-center study on reverse total shoulder arthroplasty, arthroscopic versus open repair of massive rotator cuff tears, and long-term results of operative treatment of complex elbow fracture. Dr. Harter has also authored or co-authored several publications including “Reverse Shoulder Prosthesis with a Lateralized Glenosphere: Early Results of a Prospective Multi-Center Study Stratified by Diagnosis,” and “Benign nerve tumors of the hand and the forearm.”