Dr. Ruchelsman is the Chief of the Division of Hand and Upper Extremity Surgery at Newton-Wellesley Hospital. He is Board Certified by the American Board of Orthopaedics Surgery and holds a Subspecialty Certificate of Added Qualification in Surgery of the Hand and Upper Extremity. He is Clinical Associate Professor at Tufts University School of Medicine and a consultant at MGH/Harvard Medical School. He is the President and Director of the Hand Surgery Research & Education Foundation, a 501(c)(3), which supports clinical research and education to improve the quality of life for people with afflictions of the hand and upper extremity.

He is a hand and wrist sports medicine consultant for the New England Patriots, Boston Cannons, Harvard University (Division I Ivy League), Boston College (Division I ACC) and several other regional Division I-III collegiate programs. He has served as Team Physician for the USA National Maccabiah ice hockey and basketball teams. He, along with his partners, continues to provide care for the professional athlete, and together they represent a source of initial and second opinions for the injured athlete. In 2025, Dr. Ruchelsman was elected as an NBA / NBPA Second Opinion Physician for hand & wrist injuries. Dr. Ruchelsman continues to publish and lecture on hand and wrist injuries unique to the athlete, and recently, he has published results with his novel technique for fixation of metacarpal fractures which has allowed athletes to return to play more rapidly.

Dr. Ruchelsman specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of disorders, and injuries of the elbow, forearm, wrist, and hand in patients ranging in age from infancy to adulthood. His subspecialty practice includes upper extremity trauma and sports injuries, post traumatic
 reconstruction, tendon disorders, arthroscopy, peripheral nerve surgery, and microsurgery. He continues to pioneer the use of ultrasound-guided cortisone and platelet rich plasma injections in the hand and wrist.

Dr. Ruchelsman graduated from Boston University, Summa Cum Laude, and completed honors work in advanced anatomy and biomechanics of the musculoskeletal system. He received his medical degree from New York University School of Medicine where he was elected to the Alpha Omega Alpha Medical Honor Society and received the NYU School of Medicine Excellence in Musculoskeletal Research Award.

Dr. Ruchelsman completed his orthopaedic surgery residency at the prestigious New York University Hospital for Joint Diseases where he was selected Executive Chief Resident, and was twice awarded the Eleanor Kauffman Award for Orthopaedic Research.

Dr. Ruchelsman completed the Harvard Medical School Hand, Upper Extremity, and Microsurgery Fellowship at Massachusetts General Hospital, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, and Boston Children’s Hospital.

Awards and Honors

• Boston Magazine, Top Doctors

Practice Website: bostonhandtoshoulder.com