About
RCVS Recognised Specialist in Small Animal Surgery (Orthopaedics)
EBVS® European Specialist in Veterinary Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation
Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation
Professor Noel Fitzpatrick, originally from Laois, Ireland, is a world-class orthopaedic-neuro veterinary surgeon and managing director of one of the largest veterinary referral centres in the UK, Fitzpatrick Referrals.
Noel obtained his Bachelor of Veterinary Medicine from University College Dublin in 1990. Following scholarships at The University of Pennsylvania and The University of Ghent, he went on to complete the RCVS certificates in small animal orthopaedics and radiology.
Noel has attained boarded specialist status by examination in both the USA and the UK, with the degrees of ACVSMR, American College of Veterinary Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation, and DSAS(Orth), the Diploma in Small Animal Surgery (Orthopaedics).
Noel is the Managing Director of Fitzpatrick Referrals, one of the largest wholly-owned independent veterinary referral centre in the UK. Fitzpatrick Referrals consists of two centres specialising in orthopaedics, neurosurgery & rehabilitation and regenerative medical & implant technologies. Fitzpatricks employs more than 170 people. The first centre was built in 2005 in Eashing, Surrey where the second is also now based and completed in 2018.
Noel is the clinical chair and chief surgeon, operating daily. He is particularly experienced in minimally invasive arthroscopic (keyhole) surgery, spinal disc disease, limb deformities, joint replacement and limb salvage for severe trauma or cancer. In 2009 he became the first veterinary surgeon in the world to successfully apply a cutting-edge amputation prosthesis (PerFiTS) to a cat called Oscar who had lost both hind paws in an accident. He has gone on to deploy this technology for dozens more animals.
Noel has devised and implemented more than thirty new procedures and implant systems in the past decade. These include new joint resurfacing and replacement technologies, techniques for growth deformity correction, limb amputation endo- and exo-prosthetics for limb salvage, metallic-tendon in-growth and fracture repair systems and implants for spinal fusion and disc replacement.
As a result of his work, Noel is recognised and respected globally as a true thought leader in his field.
Noel is a passionate advocate for his profession and through his clinical and media work aspires to positively influence and improve the world for the animals who reside within our homes and out.
Noel lives with his two Maine Coon cats Ricochet and Excalibur, who provide him with endless joy and inspiration.
Academic research
Noel has shown an unprecedented commitment to academic research from private veterinary practice, having been an author on dozens of peer-reviewed papers in the past ten years. His research has been diverse. He has established evidence for surgical techniques and implants as well as elucidation of disease epidemiology.
Noel is an Associate Professor at the University of Florida School of Veterinary Medicine. He is one of the founding partners of the Veterinary School at The University of Surrey where he is also Professor of Orthopaedics. He has received Doctorates from both The University of Surrey and The University of Bath for his contributions to medical science.
Sponsorship & collaborations
He has sponsored and inspired more than forty fellowships, internships, residencies and PhDs in Europe and the USA, leading to landmark publications and embracing the marriage of high-volume high-quality clinical veterinary practice with evidence-based medicine and compassionate care, to give all animal guardians access to all options for their animal friends.
Landmark papers
These include the publication of a treatment algorithm for addressing developmental elbow disease and reporting the outcomes and complication rates in a series of over 1000 consecutive tibial plateau levelling osteotomies.
Lectures
Noel has delivered more than 1000 lectures around the globe for more than a decade, including as a keynote speaker at both human and veterinary congresses. Noel is regularly invited to speak and inspire audiences from within the veterinary and medical industry and beyond, including students, the British Army, Art and Literature followers, City financiers, and opinion formers. In 2018 Noel was given the great honour of being asked to deliver the keynote speech at ACVS Congress in Phoenix, Arizona, on the subject of “Revolution or evolution? Ethics and engineering of bionic biology”. In 2019 Noel was invited to speak at the Royal College of Surgeons Vicary lectureship, the first time a veterinary surgeon had been asked to do so.
Innovator
Noel is the Director, of Fitzbionics, a team of bio-engineers who conceive, design, develop, manufacture, test and implement new implants for the alleviation of pain and suffering in animals. A number of Fitzbionics technologies have featured not just in respected veterinary journals but also in broadcast media across the world.
One Medicine
Noel has been instrumental in bringing the concept of One Medicine to the fore in the UK, designing and establishing a platform for the cross-pollination of expertise and ideas between veterinary and human medicine. One Medicine is at the heart of Noel’s mission and the cornerstone of Humanimal Trust, the charity he has founded and the first of its kind in the UK.
Television & Media
Noel has been the subject of several TV shows and documentaries which have been broadcast internationally. In 2014 Channel 4 started airing The Supervet, based at Fitzpatrick Referrals and following the stories of the patients who come through its doors. The series has run for 19 successful series. The programme explores the importance of the human-animal bond in society and our moral responsibility for animals in the context of advanced medical and surgical care. Noel has published three No.1 Sunday Times bestselling memoirs, and children’s books including Vetman and his Bionic Animal Clan in 2021 and The Super Pets in 2023. In 2023 Noel released an illustrated book sharing the story of his life with his border terrier Keira, in the bestselling Keira & Me.
Awards
Noel has received the Bloomberg, Simon and Blaine Awards for teaching and contribution to veterinary surgery. He is recognised in the Guinness Book of Records for his achievements and in 2016 he had the honour of being invited to Buckingham Palace to discuss his work with Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth.
See all of Noel’s publications on his Google Scholar Page
