
Overview
John T. Heffernan, MD, is fellowship trained in all aspects of shoulder and elbow surgery and has extensive training in sports medicine surgery. His interests include arthroscopy of the shoulder and elbow, rotator cuff repair, shoulder instability, shoulder and elbow reconstruction, fracture care of the upper extremity, ligament reconstruction of the knee, and knee replacements. He is a Candidate Member of the American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons and serves as a reviewer for their Journal of Shoulder and Elbow Surgery.During his medical training, Dr. Heffernan volunteered his time providing medical care as a sideline team physician for high school football teams of New Orleans, worked as an assistant team physician for Columbia University Athletics and assisted with the medical care of the New York Yankees and New York City FC (MLS). As a former varsity collegiate athlete in swimming, Dr. Heffernan is passionate about getting athletes of all ages back to their best performance.Dr. Heffernan is passionate about his work as an orthopedic surgeon and getting his patients back to their highest quality of life and activity. He believes that providing outstanding orthopedic care starts first with listening carefully to his patients.Dr. Heffernan is a fifth-generation native of the Puget Sound region and is proud to return home and take care of the people of his community. He and his wife, who is also a physician, are avid downhill skiers and enjoy cycling, hiking, being on the water, and spending time with their family.
Dr. Heffernan is rated as an Advanced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Frozen Shoulder. His top areas of expertise are Congenital Mirror Movement Disorder, Frozen Shoulder, Tendinitis, and Tennis Elbow.
His clinical research consists of co-authoring 4 peer reviewed articles. MediFind looks at clinical research from the past 15 years.
Insurance
Accepted insurance can change. Please verify directly with the provider.
Accepted insurance plans:
- EPO
- HMO
- POS
- PPO
- EPO
- HMO
- PPO
- EPO
- HMO
- POS
- PPO
- EPO
- HMO
- POS
- PPO
- HMO
- INSURANCE PLAN
- MANAGED MEDICAID PLAN
- MEDICARE MAPD
- MEDICARE PDP
- MEDICARE-MEDICAID PLAN
- OTHER COMMERCIAL
- OTHER MEDICARE
- OTHER MEDICARE PART D
- PPO
- EPO
- INSURANCE PLAN
- MEDICARE MAPD
- MEDICARE PDP
- OTHER COMMERCIAL
- OTHER MEDICARE
- PPO
- HMO
- POS
- PPO
- EPO
- HMO
- PPO
- EPO
- HMO
- HMO
- MANAGED MEDICAID PLAN
- HMO
- POS
- PPO
- HMO
- INSURANCE PLAN
- MANAGED MEDICAID PLAN
- MEDICARE MAPD
- MEDICARE PDP
- MEDICARE SNP
- OTHER COMMERCIAL
- OTHER MEDICARE
- OTHER MEDICARE PART D
- PPO
- EPO
- HMO
- PPO
- HMO
- PPO
- HMO
- INDEMNITY
- POS
- PPO
- HMO
- INSURANCE PLAN
- MANAGED MEDICAID PLAN
- MEDICARE MAPD
- MEDICARE PDP
- OTHER MEDICARE
- POS
- PPO
Accepted plan types not found. Please verify directly with the provider.
- OTHER MANAGED MEDICAID
- OTHER MEDICAID
- STATE MEDICAID
- INSURANCE PLAN
- MANAGED MEDICAID PLAN
- MEDICARE MAPD
- MEDICARE PDP
- MEDICARE SNP
- MEDICARE-MEDICAID PLAN
- OTHER MEDICARE PART D
- EPO
- PPO
- EPO
- PPO
- INSURANCE PLAN
- MEDICARE MAPD
- OTHER COMMERCIAL
- PPO
- EPO
- PPO
- EPO
- HMO
- POS
- PPO
- INSURANCE PLAN
- MEDICARE MAPD
- OTHER COMMERCIAL
- MEDICARE DISCOUNT CARD
- MEDICARE PDP
- OTHER MEDICARE
- EPO
- HMO
- INSURANCE PLAN
- MANAGED MEDICAID PLAN
- MEDICARE MAPD
- MEDICARE PDP
- MEDICARE SNP
- MEDICARE-MEDICAID PLAN
- OTHER MEDICARE
- OTHER MEDICARE PART D
Locations
2727 Hollycroft St Suite #410, Gig Harbor, WA 98335
1724 W Union Ave, Suite 100, Tacoma, WA 98405
7308 Bridgeport Way W, Suite 201, Lakewood, WA 98499
Additional Areas of Focus
Dr. Heffernan has provided the following conditions as areas of focus. Please note that we may not have enough data to validate their experience in some of these conditions.
Clinical Research
Clinical research consists of overseeing clinical studies of patients undergoing new treatments and therapies, and publishing articles in peer reviewed medical journals. Providers who actively participate in clinical research are generally at the forefront of the fields and aware of the most up-to-date advances in treatments for their patients.
Proliance Surgeons
Julian S. Arroyo, MD, is a board-certified orthopedic surgeon who specializes in shoulder reconstruction, upper extremity orthopedic surgery, and sports medicine. He began practicing in 1996 and is the first fellowship-trained shoulder surgeon to practice in Pierce County. He is professionally interested in minimally invasive shoulder procedures and outpatient shoulder arthroplasty. He uses the most advanced surgical and non-surgical techniques available to help his patients return to a normal lifestyle more quickly and with fewer complications.Dr. Arroyo is a frequent contributor to leading orthopedic journals and lectures and instructs physicians in advanced shoulder reconstruction techniques. He also has worked with major manufacturers, assisting in development and design of orthopedic implants and techniques. Dr. Arroyo is one of a select few surgeons in the state with membership in the distinguished American Shoulder and Elbow Surgery Association and is also a reviewing editor for the association’s Journal of Shoulder & Elbow Surgery. As a Pacific Northwest native, Dr. Arroyo is very active in the community. He enjoys snow skiing, water sports, fishing, hunting, and golf. Dr. Arroyo is rated as an Advanced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Frozen Shoulder. His top areas of expertise are Frozen Shoulder, Osteoarthritis, Tendinitis, and Bursitis.
Proliance Surgeons
Samuel S. Koo, MD, a board-certified orthopedic physician and surgeon specializing in minimally invasive arthroscopic shoulder surgery, complex open shoulder surgery, trauma, and fracture care. He also performs platelet-rich plasma therapy. He is an authority on treating shoulder problems to help patients resume an active lifestyle as quickly as possible.Dr. Koo has trained with Dr. Stephen Burkhart, the world’s foremost expert in minimally invasive shoulder surgery. He also has a clinical interest in total and reverse total shoulder replacement, large to massive rotator cuff tears, complex labral tears, bone grafts for chronic instability, and revision arthroscopic shoulder surgery.Dr. Koo believes all surgeons must have two essential qualities: integrity and empathy. To him, integrity means treating each patient as if he were caring for his wife or children. Family is important to him. He believes that integrity means offering the highest quality of care available. He is an expert in arthroscopic (minimally invasive) shoulder surgery, but he will not recommend surgery unless all non-operative solutions have been explored and exhausted. The shoulder is an extremely fascinating joint with lots of moving parts. As such, injuries are common and often complex. Over the last few years, there have been dramatic improvements in the way shoulder pathology is treated. Orthopedic surgeons are now able to perform most shoulder surgeries using arthroscopic techniques (small incisions) that are at least as good, if not better than, the open (larger incisions) procedures of the past.He has trained with the world’s experts in minimally invasive shoulder surgery, so the care and technical expertise his patients receive is cutting-edge and based on the best available research for various shoulder ailments (rotator cuff tears, labral tears and instability, etc.). He is always actively looking for new ways to improve his surgicalonsurgical treatment methods to help his patients regain their active lifestyle.Dr. Koo feels it is unfortunate that surgeons are often not associated with empathy, because they are in the ideal position to support patients as they recover from difficult procedures. In his practice, his patients’ questions will be heard and answered promptly. By working together he and his patients can optimize the patient experience and maximize their health and well-being.Learn more about Dr. Koo at drsamuelkoo.com</a>. Dr. Koo is rated as an Advanced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Frozen Shoulder. His top areas of expertise are Frozen Shoulder, Tendinitis, Bursitis, and Tenosynovitis.
Proliance Surgeons
Craig T. Arntz, MD, is a board-certified orthopedic shoulder specialist with 25 years of experience treating problems that often require shoulder surgery, including rotator cuff tears, instability, fractures, and shoulder arthritis. He has advanced training in shoulder surgery with extensive experience in treating the most complex shoulder disorders. He has particular interest in arthroscopic shoulder repair, rotator cuff surgery and shoulder replacement surgery, including reverse shoulder replacement.Dr. Arntz is also a board-certified hand surgeon, and he is recognized in the Seattle and Renton communities as a shoulder and upper extremity specialist. He is proud to have had thousands of physician and patient referrals.He uses advanced techniques to restore his patients' shoulder and hand comfort and function as quickly and safely as possible. He has co-authored several articles and book chapters about rotator cuff repair and shoulder arthritis reconstruction.He is a native of Seattle. Outside of medicine, he enjoys spending time with his family. He also enjoys snow and water skiing, boating, and travel. Dr. Arntz is rated as a Distinguished provider by MediFind in the treatment of Frozen Shoulder. His top areas of expertise are Tendinitis, Bursitis, Tenosynovitis, and Frozen Shoulder.
Areas of Expertise
MediFind evaluates expertise by pulling from factors such as number of articles a doctor has published in medical journals, participation in clinical trials, speaking at industry conferences, prescribing and referral patterns, and strength of connections with other experts in their field.
Learn more about MediFind’s expert tiers
- Advanced
- BursitisDr. Heffernan isAdvanced. Learn about Bursitis.
- Congenital Mirror Movement DisorderDr. Heffernan isAdvanced. Learn about Congenital Mirror Movement Disorder.
- Frozen ShoulderDr. Heffernan isAdvanced. Learn about Frozen Shoulder.
- OsteoarthritisDr. Heffernan isAdvanced. Learn about Osteoarthritis.
- TendinitisDr. Heffernan isAdvanced. Learn about Tendinitis.
- Tennis ElbowDr. Heffernan isAdvanced. Learn about Tennis Elbow.
- Experienced
- Baker CystDr. Heffernan isExperienced. Learn about Baker Cyst.
- Brachial PlexopathyDr. Heffernan isExperienced. Learn about Brachial Plexopathy.
- Caffey DiseaseDr. Heffernan isExperienced. Learn about Caffey Disease.
- Carpal Tunnel SyndromeDr. Heffernan isExperienced. Learn about Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.
- Ganglion CystDr. Heffernan isExperienced. Learn about Ganglion Cyst.
- Gorham's DiseaseDr. Heffernan isExperienced. Learn about Gorham's Disease.


