Bradley, Thompson to address Annual Meeting

Peter Pollack

PAC-sponsored event features point/counterpoint on healthcare reform Former Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) Tommy G. Thompson and former Senator William W. Bradley will trade diverse points of view honed in the national political spotlight during an Orthopaedic Political Action Committee (PAC)-sponsored event at the 2009 Annual Meeting in Las Vegas, on Thursday, Feb. 26, in the Venetian Ballroom.

AAOS releases technology overview on locking plates

Fareeha Shuttari-Khan

During its December 2008 meeting, the AAOS Board of Directors adopted a new technology overview (TO) on locking plates for extremity fractures. Kristy L. Weber, MD, chair of the Council on Research, Quality Assessment and Technology, presented the document, which was developed by a workgroup overseen by the Guidelines and Technology Oversight Committee (GTOC).

Don’t miss Las Vegas!

S. Terry Canale, MD

What you do here stays here. What you learn here stays with you forever. I predict that the 2009 AAOS Annual Meeting in Las Vegas, Feb. 25–28, will be the largest ever. I qualify as an expert on the Annual Meeting because I have been to every one for the last 35 years. It’s the greatest orthopaedic show on earth. Wouldn’t it be great if we could put the “fun” back in the fundamentals of education?

AdvaMed updates code of ethics

The Advanced Medical Technology Association (AdvaMed), a trade association of medical device manufacturers, has approved a major update to its “Code of Ethics on Interactions with Health Care Professionals.” The code is designed to clarify appropriate and inappropriate activity between healthcare professionals and representatives of AdvaMed member companies.

In Memoriam

Edward M. Fitzgerald, MD Nov. 20, 2008 Colorado Springs, Colo. F. James Funk Jr., MD Dec. 6, 2008 Atlanta, Ga. Enyi Okereke, MD Nov. 25, 2008 Voorhees, N.J.

A narrow escape from Mumbai

Jennie McKee

USBJD president, executive director caught in terror attacks What began as a casual dinner in an outdoor courtyard at the Taj Mahal Palace and Tower Hotel in Mumbai, India turned into a horrific experience that J. Edward Puzas, PhD, president of the U.S. Bone and Joint Decade (USBJD), and Toby King, USBJD executive director, will never forget. Dr. Puzas, Mr. King, and their wives were in India for the Bone and Joint Decade World Network Conference. At about 10 p.m. on Nov.

Peaks, his interest

Peter Pollack

Climbing to the top of the world on every continent “People say, ‘Why do you do it?’ Well, the beauty is awesome,” explains Gregory A. Konrath, MD. “You get views that you never see anywhere else, but you’ve got to not mind being cold and miserable at times.” Dr. Konrath is an avid mountain climber who spends much of his free time traveling the globe looking for his next challenge. He grew up in the geographically flat Midwest but took a trauma fellowship with Michael W.

Send home your message with new AAOS brochures

Carolyn Rogers

When you send a patient home with your words in mind, and a quality brochure in hand, you help relieve patient anxiety, enhance comprehension, and increase compliance. That explains why, in an age of Web searches, texting, and instant online diagnosis, AAOS members continue to seek out Academy brochures and booklets for patient education, says Frances A. Farley, MD, chair of the Patient Education Committee.

Add value to your state, regional society meetings

Jennie McKee

AAOS offers ‘grand rounds’ cultural competency training Want to add a free educational component to your state or regional orthopaedic society meeting? Consider including the AAOS seminar on Culturally Competent Care: An Orthopaedist’s Responsibility, as part of your educational program.

Preparing for a playground

Addy Kujawa

Children have their say at Design Day Can you build an entire safe and accessible playground in just one day? Academy members know the answer is “Absolutely!” But getting to that day takes months of planning and preparation. First comes the challenge of finding the right partners and the right place.

SCCOT sees AAOS as global model

Jennie McKee

Colombians learn how Academy works during 3-day visit Rodrigo Lopez, MD, president of the Sociedad Colombiana de Cirugía Ortopédica y Traumatología (SCCOT), knows the value of a good role model. That’s one reason why Dr. Lopez and other officers and staff of the Colombian orthopaedic association visited the AAOS for 3 days last September to learn more about the Academy.

“The Last Lecture”: A good way to start the new year

Frank M. Griffin, MD

Get on YouTube (www.youtube.com) and watch Professor Randy Pausch’s “Last Lecture.” It’s a phenomenal lecture from a dying professor about how to live your life. It reminded me of why I became a doctor. The “Last Lecture” begins with a section about “Achieving Your Childhood Dreams.” Being a physician has helped me achieve most of my childhood dreams. I graduated from a small school with only 25 students in my senior class. There was no one from my hometown that was a “doctor” of any kind.