AAOS Now, July 2015
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Misaligned Incentives and Unexpected Outcomes
As orthopaedic surgeons, we’ve all been told that our reimbursements are on an inevitable trajectory from volume- to value-based care. Many of us feel threatened by this transition, but not because we are worried about the care we deliver. We worry because of all the crucial unknowns—most importantly, who determines what constitutes quality care? As surgeons, we control only a subset of the hundreds of factors that affect our patients’ treatment outcome.
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In Memoriam
John D. Broms, MD Feb. 19, 2015 Ventura, Calif. Wesley H. Burnham, MD Jan. 14, 2014 Minneapolis Michael W. Eaton, MD May 19, 2015 Anchorage, Alaska Jerry S. Farber, MD May 21, 2015 Rockville, Md. Richard B. Peoples, MD Dec. 11, 2014 Fort Worth, Texas Robert E. Tooms, MD Sept. 10, 2013 Germantown, Tenn. John Stephen Waters, MD May 14, 2015 Gainesville, Fla.
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Trained for Trauma
Tuesday, May 12, 2015, would be a long day for Herbert Cushing, MD, chief medical officer for Temple University Hospital in Philadelphia. He’d been up much of the night before taking calls about an electrical project at the hospital. At 4 a.m., realizing he had passed the point of sleep, he rose and went to work and a series of budget meetings. He finally went to bed about 10 p.m.
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The Power of a Patient Success Story
There were few dry eyes during the annual AAOS Media Orthopaedic Reporting Excellence (MORE) Awards ceremony on April 30, 2015, when Luke Fleer shared the story of a horrific car crash that nearly took his life 11 years ago and the subsequent years of surgery and rehabilitation—under the diligent care of a Michigan orthopaedic surgeon—that eventually allowed him to walk and run again. Mr.
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What’s Wrong with Patient-Centered Care?
In one of his last columns as editor-in chief of AAOS Now, S. Terry Canale, MD, described an unsatisfying transition of his office practice from a more patient-centered model to what might be called an efficiency-centered model (“Confessions of an Orthopaedic Surgeon,” AAOS Now, November 2014). It was an honest, sobering description, and Dr. Canale is to be commended for being self-critical and forthright enough to describe a phenomenon that we, as orthopaedic surgeons, readily recognize.
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Fellows Elect 2016 Nominating Committee
In May, the AAOS fellowship elected the following six members of the 2016 Nominating Committee, and the AAOS Board of Directors appointed the chair at its meeting in March: John R. Tongue, MD (Ore.), Chair Timothy J. Bray, MD (Nev.) Lawrence D. Dorr, MD (Calif.) Thomas A. Einhorn, MD (N.Y.) John T. Gill, MD (Texas) Richard F. Kyle, MD (Minn.) Thomas P. Sculco, MD (N.Y.) Ann E. Van Heest, MD (Minn.
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Gaining a New Perspective
Six weeks, 15 flights, 11 hotels, and one Segway crash changed the lives of four young orthopaedic surgeons. We were from Charlotte, N.C. (Brian M. Curtin, MD), Bristol, United Kingdom (Jason Webb, MD), Tullamore, Ireland (Eoin Sheehan, MD), and Los Angeles (Daniel A. Oakes, MD), and our journey began at the AAOS Annual Meeting in Las Vegas.
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Participate in AAOE Benchmarking Survey
The American Association of Orthopaedic Executives (AAOE) Benchmarking Survey is now open, and participation by AAOS members is welcomed. The survey was recently modernized, resulting in substantial increases in participation. That means more accurate data on a wide range of metrics for orthopaedic practices. New Features The online portal has been replaced with an Excel spreadsheet.
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Pat on the Back…
Joan E. Bechtold, PhD, appointed to the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases advisory council. Andrew W. Gorman, MD, president-elect of the American Medical Association. Stephen Eckrich, MD, recipient of the South Dakota State Medical Association 2015 Media Award. David L. Helfet, MD, recipient of the Hospital for Special Surgery’s Lifetime Achievement Award. Alan S.