By Kristen Hopf
Recipient of the O.J. Snyder Memorial Medal Award
PCOM proudly honors John J. McPhilemy, DO ’78, FAOAO, as the recipient of the 2026 O.J. Snyder Memorial Medal, the College’s highest distinction. A retired orthopedic surgeon, former chair of PCOM’s Department of Orthopedic Surgery, and longtime medical director and team physician for the Philadelphia 76ers, Dr. McPhilemy is celebrated for a lifetime of leadership, service and unwavering commitment to the ideals of osteopathic medicine.
Born in South Philadelphia and raised in the West Oak Lane section of the city, Dr. McPhilemy’s entire educational and professional journey—from grade school through medical school and residency—has been rooted in the city he continues to serve. He graduated from St. Joseph’s Preparatory School in 1965, and earned his undergraduate degree from Saint Joseph’s College in 1969 before graduating from PCOM in 1978.
In the decades since, he has watched osteopathic medicine grow in prominence, influence and size, noting that the profession’s whole-person approach to healthcare has increasingly shaped the broader medical landscape.
“I’m not going to say PCOM is the best orthopedic surgery residency program in the country, but there are none better.”
Much of Dr. McPhilemy’s career has been dedicated to educating future osteopathic physicians. He credits his mentors’ unwavering commitment to osteopathic medicine—among them John Brendan Wynne, DO ’56; Nicholas C. Pedano, DO ’61, FACOS; and former PCOM President Thomas Rowland, Jr., DO (Hon.), LLD (Hon.), DSC (Hon.)—with shaping his own approach to leadership.
From 1992 to 2025, he served as chair of PCOM’s Department of Orthopedic Surgery and played a key role in expanding the College’s orthopedic surgery residency program, which grew from four residents during his own training to a nationally competitive program producing physicians across the country.
“I’ve had the privilege of helping educate nearly 150 residents who have gone on to practice all over the United States,” Dr. McPhilemy said. “I’m not going to say PCOM is the best orthopedic surgery residency program in the country, but there are none better. When you look at other programs, whether osteopathic or allopathic, PCOM can stand head to head with any of them.”
Throughout his career, Dr. McPhilemy has been a trailblazer in orthopedic medicine. He served for more than 25 years as medical director and team physician for the Philadelphia 76ers, in a time when osteopathic physicians were less commonly represented in professional sports medicine. His leadership and impact in the field earned him the Sports Medicine Physician of the Year Award from the Philadelphia Congress of Sports Medicine in 2005, and he was named the NBA Team Physician of the Year in 2010.
Dr. McPhilemy was the first osteopathic physician invited to join the Philadelphia Orthopedic Society, and later became its first DO president from 2011 to 2012. He also served as president of the American Osteopathic Academy of Orthopedics, and has held leadership roles within numerous osteopathic and orthopedic professional organizations and societies.
For Dr. McPhilemy, the defining strength of osteopathic medicine has always been its emphasis on treating the whole person, a philosophy that has guided his clinical practice, teaching, and leadership—and continues to shape his work today. “We don’t just focus on one body part or one disease,” he said. “We connect all the parts into one and care for the entire person.”
Still practicing three days a week with Rothman Orthopaedics, Dr. McPhilemy remains active in medicine while consulting for PCOM’s surgical residency program—a role that reflects his enduring commitment to the growth and success of the institution that shaped his career.
“For me, there has always been a sense of obligation to give back,” he said. “PCOM gave me the chance to do something I always wanted to do—to become a physician—and I hope I’ve made the College proud.”
© 2026 Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine
