Birmingham OrthoAlabama Spine & Sports named Joseph Bolen as its new manager.

Black Hills Orthopedic and Spine Center's Orthopedic Urgent Care clinic in Rapid City, S.D., is celebrating its fifth year in operation according to a Nov. 11 press release sent to Becker's. 

Three orthopedic groups in Texas and California signed partnerships with HealthMe for its price transparency and direct-pay platform.

Here are four new orthopedic practice locations that opened in October:

Fairlawn, Ohio-based Crystal Clinic added 10 orthopedic surgeons, and nine were previously affiliated with Cleveland-based St. Vincent Charity Medical Center.

Phoenix-based Barrow Brain and Spine has relocated its office in the city's Deer Valley neighborhood to a new 6,100-square-foot space, according to an Oct. 31 press release sent to Becker's. 

Van Stamos, MD, was named chief medical officer of Des Plaines-based Illinois Bone and Joint Institute, according to an Oct. 28 announcement in the Daily Herald.

Big players expanding into new territories, the expansion of telemedicine and patients increasingly demanding more convenient access to care are some of the major trends affecting competition among spine practices.

Orthopedic practices have banded together through mergers, growing their footprint in their markets. Here are three mergers announced since Aug. 15:

Gainesville, Ga.-based Specialty Orthopaedics held a ribbon cutting for its new expansion, DawsonCountyNews reported Oct. 21.

Altamonte Springs, Fla.-based AdventHealth AdventHealth and Philadelphia-based Rothman opened an office in Winter Garden, Fla. that sees about 80 to 100 patients daily, the Orange Observer reported Oct. 21.

Fort Walton Beach, Fla.-based Orthopaedic Associates and Panama City, Fla.-based Southern Orthopedic Specialists will merge in November.

Los Angeles Orthopedic Surgery Specialists and Advanced Orthopedics, a practice with Unity MSK, opened a clinic at Glendale (Calif.) Adventist Hospital.

Burnsville, Minn.-based Inspired Spine opened a remodeled clinic in the same city.

Oxford (Miss.) Orthopaedics & Sports Medicine, part of U.S. Orthopaedic Partners, added two physicians.

Philadelphia-based Rothman Orthopaedic Institute is a leader in orthopedic care. Here are three leaders to know from the group:

NorthShore University HealthSystem hired neurosurgeon Amin Kassam, MD, to lead the NorthShore Neurological Institute at Northwest Community Healthcare in Arlington Heights, Ill.

Kris Radcliff, MD, has left Rothman Orthopaedic Institute in Philadelphia, where he practiced for more than 12 years, to start his own spine practice, Spinal Disc Center, which has four locations in New Jersey.

Cleveland-based St. Vincent Charity Medical Center's orthopedic surgeons will join Crystal Clinic in Fairlawn, Ohio, the practice said Oct. 12.

UVA Health Orthopedics Center in Charlottesville, Va. opened new operating rooms, NBC 29 reported Oct. 6.