Watkins honored with top national bone health award

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Colleen Watkins, M.D., a WVU Medicine rheumatologist, has been named the 2026 Andrew D. Bunta Own the Bone Clinician of the Year by the American Orthopaedic Association.

This national award recognizes Watkins for her exceptional expertise, leadership and volunteerism in promoting bone health through Own the Bone, a national quality improvement program and web-based registry that provides medical centers with tools to standardize osteoporosis care and prevent secondary fragility fractures.

Her role extends to the program’s Steering Committee, where she helps shape national care standards by providing program feedback and updating educational materials.

Watkins has been at the center of the program’s local impact since the beginning. After joining the Department of Orthopaedics at WVU Medicine J.W. Ruby Memorial Hospital, she built the Metabolic Bone Clinic from scratch.

In 2009, Ruby Memorial became the first healthcare institution in West Virginia to participate in Own the Bone. With the support of her department and clinic staff members, Watkins then used her experience to expand bone care across the region.

She and her team assisted and guided the launch of osteoporosis programs across WVU Medicine at Wheeling Hospital, Thomas Hospitals in Charleston and Uniontown Hospital.

Own the Bone trains healthcare workers and includes education for patients and orthopaedic residents. While the program is intended for healthcare workers, Watkins explained that patients see its ultimate benefit through a structured approach to care.

Although the program’s primary focus is osteoporosis diagnosis and care after breaking a bone, Watkins said her goal is to keep patients from getting that first fracture. Because patients who have had prior fractures are at a higher risk for future breaks, the program ensures they receive bone density screenings and appropriate medication.

“Even the patients that have already had a fracture, by getting them treated properly for their osteoporosis, it prevents further fractures down the road,” Watkins said.

The Clinician of the Year Award is named in honor of Andrew D. Bunta, M.D., an orthopaedic surgeon who helped establish the Own the Bone program. For Watkins, the recognition highlights WVU Medicine’s legacy as a leader and major national resource in bone health.

“It’s rewarding that we can have programs like this here,” Watkins said. “We have one of the largest programs, and we’ve made such a big impact.”