Dr. Christopher Summa has been practicing in Santa Cruz County for nearly 26 years.  For the first 15 years of practice, I was in a sole practitioner private practice and then began working at Palo Alto Medical Foundation where I remain today.  I earned my medical degree from The University of New Mexico School of Medicine, completed my residency in Orthopedic Surgery at The University of New Mexico School of Medicine and my fellowship in Spine Surgery at the Harborview Medical Center, University of Washington, with joint appointments in the Department of Orthopedic Surgery and the Department of Neurosurgery. In addition to medical training, I earned my MBA from University of Massachusetts, Amherst.  I have been on faculty for several teaching institutions, and a consultant for numerous organizations including medical device companies and start-ups. I have also published multiple peer reviewed research articles and have been involved in FDA IDE studies. I am a member of The North American Spine Society, American College of Spine Surgery, American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons, The American Board of Orthopedic Surgery and many local medical and surgical societies. My practice is focused on motion preservation/spinal arthroplasty as well as minimally invasive reconstruction techniques.   I currently work in Santa Cruz, Ca, based in the Neurosurgery Department of Palo Alto Medical Foundation and have privileges at the Sutter Maternity and Surgery Center and is the current chief of surgery at Dominican Hospital. When not seeing patients, I am interested in bicycling, motorcycling, skiing and snowboarding, travelling, camping, and backpacking.