Pat Kostial, RN, BSN

Pat Kostial is a graduate of St. Louis University School of Nursing, Class of ‘81.  She served as Orthopedic Service Coordinator in the operating room at Cardinal Glennon Children’s Hospital from 1985-1987.Pat experienced the transition of spine implants from Harrington rods to the first generation of complex segmental spinal instrumentation. 

Pat accepted the position of Spine Service Coordinator at St. Louis University Dept. of Orthopaedic Surgery under Behrooz A. Akbarnia, MD from 1987-1990 and then as Spine Service Coordinator under the Department of Neuroscience at St. John’s Mercy Medical Center in St. Louis, MO, a level one trauma center, from 1990-2000.  She then rejoined Dr. Akbarnia in San Diego, CA as Nurse Manager at the San Diego Center for Spinal Disorders from 2000-2013.  During that time, Pat also served as a volunteer part-time administrator for both San Diego Spine Foundation (SDSF) and Growing Spine Foundation (GSF until 2012) until she became SDSF’s full-time Executive Director in 2013. 

Having worked extensively with patients and families with Early Onset Scoliosis, Pat has also co-authored Nursing chapters in the 1st and 2nd editions of the textbook “The Growing Spine” as well as the upcoming 3rd Edition, and served as Assistant to the Editor on the second edition.  She continued to serve as both Executive Director and as Fellowship Administrator from 2013-2020. Pat has been an Associate Member of the Scoliosis Research Society since 1995. She and her husband Michael reside on Lake Fork, Texas where Pat works from home and travels to San Diego periodically each year. Pat and Michael are blessed with 9 grandchildren as well as Michael’s 4 children.