Edward W. Sandall

Edward was born in March 9, 1936 in northern Nebraska, to Archibald Wilmington “Archie” and Ruth Evelyn Barker Sandall, a Swedish-American Midwestern family. Growing up on their cattle ranch outside Bassett, Nebraska, Edward was given a calf each year for his birthday, and tended to the chores of ranching with older brothers Wesley and Jerry, and little sister Lillian. From riding a horse 5 miles in the snow, to a one-room schoolhouse, graduating from Bassett High School in 1950, he then sold his small herd to pay for pre-med studies at Chadron State College.

Also in Chadron, while attending the United Methodist Church, he met Elaine Andrews, the daughter of his favorite Chadron State chemistry and physics professor, Lyle V. Andrews. After receiving his undergraduate degree in 1956, Ed attended the University of Nebraska, College of Medicine at Omaha. He and Elaine married in June of 1959, and Edward graduated from med school in 1960.

Edward interned at Immanuel Hospital in Omaha, Nebraska, before joining the U.S. Air Force as a Captain. Assigned to Johnson Air Base outside of Tokyo, Japan in 1961, he gained an appreciation for Japanese culture and style, and welcomed their first child when daughter Andrea was born. He completed his residency with the A.F.B. Hospital in Japan in 1964, then returned to the U.S. in 1965 to Jacksonville, Florida where their second daughter, Shelly, was born.

Upon completing his orthopedic service at Jacksonville Memorial Hospital in 1968, Dr. Sandall joined the orthopedic practice of Brandon, Peacock and Jones in West Palm Beach, Florida. The medical partnership expanded to become the Orthopedic Center of Palm Beach County and, by 1995 was the largest orthopedic practice in the state. He was Chief of Orthopedics at John F. Kennedy Memorial Hospital from 1981-2004, then practiced with the Palm Beach Orthopedic Institute from 2004-2014, specializing in arthroscopy and total joint replacement of the lower extremities performed at Good Samaritan Hospital in West Palm Beach. Other hospitals Dr. Sandall practiced at included St. Mary’s, Palms West and Delray Medical Center.

He played a large part in establishing the two major trauma centers in Palm Beach County, and was an active member of the Medical Advisory Board of Rehabilitative Center for Children and Adults, the American Board of Orthopedic Surgeons, American College of Surgeons, American Association of Hip and Knee Surgeons, Arthroscopy Association of North America and the Florida Orthopedic Society. Other associations he was a member of were FMA, EOA, SMA, SOA, PBCMS.

Through his oldest daughter’s interest in ballet, Ed met Marie Hale, her dance teacher at Imperial Studios in Palm Beach, and married Marie in 1978. He then became the orthopedic surgeon for Ballet Florida, the company Marie formed as artistic director in 1985. Ed performing many successful dance-injury operations and was the physician for the dance company. When not in the operating room or at a ballet performance, Ed was also an accomplished craftsman, creating many pieces of furniture and ironwork.

He volunteered time and expertise to students for public school scoliosis screenings, and spent several years working with athletes of the Special Olympics. From sugarcane workers in Pahokee, Florida in the late 1970s and early 1980s, to Native American fisherman in Anchorage, Alaska, he advised those communities on preventative measures and cared for their injuries.

During his career of an almost half-century, Dr. Sandall performed over 8,000 operations, including the first arthroscopic knee surgery in West Palm Beach. He had a unique and creative gift for inventions, developing several specialized instruments to enhance surgical procedures. And though these were adapted by medical companies for use throughout the industry, he never sought compensation or recognition for these instruments. Together with Dr. Stanley Hoppenfeld, Dr. Sandall pioneered specialized equipment for spinal surgeries, precursors to the instruments used in minimally invasive surgery today.

Dr. Sandall gave selflessly to his profession and never shied away from a challenge. His years of experience first as a diagnostician and second as a surgeon established his belief that “each patient has different needs, and treatment must be tailored to the individual. patient” He was beloved by patients for his compassion, diligence, and practical advice in solving complicated situations to benefit their recovery. Ed was highly respected among colleagues such as Dr. Michael Zeide, who has said, “Ed was the finest surgeon I ever saw,” and Dr. Ron Grober who said, “He was the epitome of what a doctor should be.”

Edward Sandall will be remembered as a humble man, an exceptional physician and surgeon, and a kind and generous human being.

Dr. Sandall is survived by his wife, Marie Hale Sandall, former wife Elaine M. Sandall Graczyk, their daughters Andrea Renee and Shelly Lynn Sandall, stepdaughter Irma Marie Hale, brothers Archibald Wesley “Wes” Sandall, Norman Jerald Sandall, sister, Lillian Hannah Sandall, and grandchildren Julia Devin Sloan and Blake-Hayden Hart.

Per Ed’s wishes there will be no service or memorial. You may leave condolences on the newspaper’s or Quattlebaum’s guestbooks.

If you would like to make a donation in Ed’s name, please consider giving to the charity he supported, Doctors Without Borders, via https://donate.doctorswithoutborders.org/onetime.cfm?type=tribute