David E. de la Harpe

David is one of the leading spinal surgeons in Melbourne. He has built a reputation as an expert surgeon with a careful and considered approach to the treatment of disorders of the cervical, thoracic and lumbar spine. David has particular expertise in microdiscectomy.

David has a unique perspective on the treatment of the spine, having qualified as a chiropractor from RMIT in 1980. He subsequently underwent medical training and graduated with Honours from the University of Melbourne. He also won the Stirling prize for Clinical Surgery in his final year. He underwent resident training at the Royal Melbourne Hospital and was subsequently accepted for the Orthopaedic Training program. He completed this in 1999 when he became a Fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons.

David also completed a Masters of Surgery at the University of Melbourne.

He travelled overseas in 1999 and completed a spinal fellowship at one of the prominent spinal centres in the United Kingdom at Queens Medical Centre, Nottingham, England.

On his return from overseas, David held consultant positions at the Royal Melbourne Hospital (Trauma centre) and the Austin Hospital (Victorian Spinal Cord Service) where he specialised in complex spinal surgery.

David now operates exclusively at the Epworth Hospital. He is a founding member of Orthopaedics Victoria.

He is also a member of the Spine Society and a patron of Chiropractic and Osteopathic College of Australasia (COCA) which promotes continuing education for Chiropractors and Osteopaths.

David is an avid car collector and restorer and is also passionate about rugby union.