Dr. O’Meara is a native of Southern California, born in San Diego.  He grew up in the San Diego and Los Angeles areas.  As a young man, Dr. O’Meara was very active in athletics and he achieved high awards and acclaim in several different sports.  A severe injury in High School convinced him to direct his focus towards becoming an orthopaedic surgeon so that he could treat and cure the type of injuries that he and many of his teammates had suffered during competition. Dr. O’Meara received an early acceptance to Occidental College, “the Harvard of the West Coast”.  During his college studies, he attended a summer internship through the University of London researching England’s National Health Service. After four years of college, he graduated with Distinctions, Cum Laude, and Phi Beta Kappa.  Dr. O’Meara then received an early acceptance to the University of Southern California (USC) School of Medicine.  During this intense additional four years of schooling, he co-authored two research studies regarding orthopaedic-related issues which were published in major orthopaedic journals. After graduating from medical school, Dr. O’Meara attended a five year Orthopaedic Residency through the University of Kansas.  The residency program provided extensive, high volume and highly technical training.  The training in Kansas utilized two Level 1 Trauma Hospitals where the latest technology was used to treat complicated injuries and trauma.  Both Hospitals were also surgical reconstruction centers that performed high volumes of joint replacements and ligament reconstructions.  During six months of his residency program, Dr. O’Meara trained in Pediatric Orthopaedic Surgery through Washington University in St. Louis. Because of his accomplishments during his training, Dr. O’Meara was awarded the Mid-America Orthopaedic Residency Award which gave him the opportunity to travel to the prestigious Campbell Clinic in Memphis, Tennessee to train in sports medicine including specialized arthroscopic procedures of the shoulder and knee. Dr. O’Meara established his private practice in Escondido and founded Palomar Orthopaedic Specialists in 1992.  He was recruited to the area by Palomar Medical Center to provide state-of-the-art orthopaedic services to patients within the Palomar-Pomerado Health District.  He established the largest orthopaedic office and orthopaedic group in the area and he quickly distinguished himself as the premier orthopaedic surgeon in Inland North County. Because of his commitment to provide the very highest quality of care to his patients, Dr. O’Meara became involved in developing highly specialized orthopaedic surgery centers where patients could receive a level of care not available at hospitals. Dr. O’Meara helped build and develop Elite Surgery Center in Escondido; The Orthopaedic Surgery Center in La Jolla; and Carlsbad Surgery Center in Carlsbad. PRIVATE PRACTICE Palomar Orthopaedic Specialists   UNDERGRADUATE EDUCATION Occidental College Los Angeles, CA  Degree: Bachelor of Arts (AB) Phi Beta Kappa   MEDICAL SCHOOL University of Southern California (USC) Los Angeles, CA  Degree: Medical Doctor (MD)  RESIDENCY University of Kansas School of Medicine, Orthopaedic Surgery Residency Program Wichita, KS  Degree: Orthopaedic Surgeon Awards: Mid-America Orthopaedic Association Traveling Residency Award in Sports Medicine