Cliff Gronseth, MD

After graduating from Dartmouth College with a degree in geology, Dr. Cliff Gronseth worked in Africa and Asia. Following a bout with malaria that almost killed him—and thankful for the Kenyan doctor who didn’t let that happen—he had the epiphany that medicine, not pretty rocks, was his calling. He received his M.D. degree from the University of California, San Francisco Medical School and completed his residency in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at the University of Michigan.

After his residency, Dr. Gronseth moved to Colorado, where he held a faculty position at the University of Colorado Medical School in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. During his time in academia, he founded the University Spine Center, a multispecialty center focused on spine care, and served as Medical Director for the University of Colorado Department of Rehabilitation’s Outpatient Services and for the University Physical Therapy practice in Boulder. While at the University of Colorado, he received multiple Outstanding Teaching Awards and helped to establish rehabilitation clinics in various Colorado communities, including Boulder, Aurora, and Steamboat Springs. Dr. Gronseth is founder and managing partner of Spine West, a private practice in Boulder, CO, specializing in non-surgical musculoskeletal medicine and ultrasound.

In addition to his full-time medical practice, Dr. Gronseth has a keen interest in developing software tools to advance ultrasound education. He holds several patents related to ultrasound and is the founder and CEO of 7D Imaging, Inc., an EdTech company focused on accelerating education and skills development. 7D Imaging’s NAV™ software suite offers interactive, CME-approved reference platforms for learning orthopedic (musculoskeletal) ultrasound and is developing modules for OB/GYN, cardiac, pulmonary, and abdominal ultrasound. Dr. Gronseth is the founder of the NYAGI Project, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that brings specialized training for basic, life-saving ultrasound skills to low-income and resource-limited areas of the world. In 2018, he received the Humanitarian Service Award from the International Foundation for Sonography Education and Research for his work in Nepal. In 2019 and 2020, Dr. Gronseth led NYAGI teams to Haiti to teach physicians and nurses how to use ultrasound for identifying life-threatening conditions of pregnancy, trauma, and orthopedic conditions.