Philanthropic Spine Care

The International Spine Foundation is a non-profit that endeavors to bring the healing power of technologically advanced spinal treatments and procedures to people of all walks of life. Through Dr. Samuel Joseph’s expertise, charity, and passion, lives have been indelibly altered and changed.

For that reason, Dr. Samuel A. Joseph, founder of Joseph Spine Institute is proudly announcing the opening of the International Spine Foundation. This opening comes at a time when the Joseph Spine Institute is celebrating over five years in business, establishing itself as the premier spinal surgery institution in the Tampa Bay area.

What means so much more than the innovative spine treatments, the pioneering surgeries, and representing the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, is the charitable and philanthropic work that Dr. Joseph has undertaken.

“It felt amazing to have a direct effect on a child’s life and not only improve their appearance but improve their quality of life and life expectancy,” Dr. Joseph told reporters in 2019 when Dr. Samuel Joseph along with a dedicated team of volunteers traveled to the Dominican Republic to save the lives of children and young adults with severe spinal deformities.

“Thinking about how many people this child will then affect in their life makes you really take a step back and be humbled by what we as a team are so fortunate and blessed to be able to do.” The volunteers had a grueling schedule which included 4 to 5 surgeries daily for the week, along with patient screenings and lectures to orthopedic residents. This was one trip of many, a trip that inspired Dr. Joseph to find new ways to help the underserved.

Make A Wish Foundation

Dr. Joseph and his family are active members of the Tampa Bay community. They have taken a special interest in the Make a Wish Foundation and its goal of granting wishes and making life better for kids with life-threatening medical conditions.

Dr. Joseph, along with his fellow co-founders, Elizabeth Joseph and Dr. Uhuru Smith, hope to broaden his impact locally, nationally and internationally, helping people of all backgrounds get access to lifesaving spinal surgeries.

About Dr. Samuel Joseph
Dr. Joseph is the founder of the International Spine Foundation and the Joseph Spine Institute. He is dedicated to pioneering minimally invasive, outpatient surgical procedures. Dr. Joseph is at the forefront of endoscopic spine surgery and a team physician for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Dr. Joseph’s practice includes the specialized, conservative, and surgical care of patients. Treatment includes therapeutic injections, disc replacement surgery, minimally invasive techniques, and complex reconstruction of adult and pediatric spinal disorders.

Dr. Joseph has used his training and experience to become a nationwide leader on revision surgery for patients who have experienced failed surgery in the past. These patients have traveled to see Dr. Joseph not only from the Tampa Bay area but from all over the state and the nation.

Dr. Joseph has published numerous articles in neurosurgical and orthopedic spine journals. His research on scoliosis, degenerative disc disease, and spinal surgery in the elderly has been presented at many international meetings including the International Meeting for Advanced Spinal Techniques.

With the founding of this non-profit, he and his family hope to create lasting change for those affected by spinal issues.

About Dr. Uhuru Smith
Dr. Smith is a board-certified Anesthesiologist and is one of four founding partners of Intrepid Anesthesia which she launched in 2021. Intrepid Anesthesia not only focuses on providing anesthesia services for both inpatient and outpatient surgical environments, but also provides management, consultation and billing services for both inpatient and outpatient facilities. Further, Dr. Smith concurrently serves at the Chief of Anesthesiology and Chief Medical Officer at Riverwalk Ambulatory Surgery Center. Prior to the inception of Intrepid Anesthesia Dr. Smith served as the Chief of Anesthesiology at The Advanced Surgery of Center for 7 years while building a comprehensive outpatient orthopedics, total joint and spine program. During this time, she expanded services in acute pain for complex outpatient spine, orthopedic surgery and pain procedures in chronically ill patients.

Dr. Smith nurtured her love of complementary medicine and entrepreneurship by opening the first and most successful IV wellness clinic in Tampa, RENEW IV Wellness. After being diagnosed with breast cancer in 2018, Dr. Smith sold RENEW but continued to practice anesthesiology and critical care throughout her treatment.

After beating breast cancer and returning to full time practice, Dr. Smith has furthered her practice by improving surgical outcomes in complex outpatient surgery by utilizing innovative and complimentary approaches in order to provide treatment for both acute and surgical pain.

Dr. Smith has strong personal interests in research, education, regenerative, and complimentary medicine as adjunct to allopathic medicine. Dr. Smith aspires to use these interests to further improve the way we approach pain, orthopedic spine, and outpatient surgery.