Burnout needs to be addressed jointly—both at the institutional and the individual level. Leaders need to be chosen who can work with the system and the physicians to promote engagement and wellness. Included are some ideas for both parties to work on.
Burnout is a significant issue throughout the healthcare system and physicians are not exempt. In fact, up to 50% of physicians suffer from burnout. In 2014, at the Mayo Clinic, the burnout rate among orthopedic surgeons was 59.6%, up from 48.3% in 2011.
Our generation of surgeons is fortunate to have many sources from which to obtain our ongoing education including meetings, online, and publications. The Western Orthopaedic Association (WOA) is an extraordinary star in the ever-expanding galaxy of orthopaedic organizations.
The 81st WOA Annual Meeting highlighted a variety of aspects that are unique to the WOA. The Meeting’s content included multispecialty panel discussions focused on current and controversial issues as well as informative “rapid fire” research presentation modules.
As physicians, we are looked up to and expected to be leaders – leaders of our teams, leaders within the hospital, and even leaders within the community. There are a variety of things we can do to help ourselves become better leaders including listening, respecting others and their ideas, and slowing down for self-reflection and mindfulness.
The 2017 WOA Blair Filler Lifetime Achievement Award will honor Richard (Dick) Haynes MD for his distinguished career of leadership, service, and education. Dr. Haynes and Sherri, his wife, will be honored Saturday, August 5th at our WOA Annual Meeting gala dinner in Kauai.
It is a privilege to serve the WOA in any capacity; the greatest honor for me personally has been serving as President. Many lessons drawn from this experience can be translated into general teaching points for all.
As your BOC representative, I submitted a WOA Board-approved AAOS Advisory Opinion at the April NOLC to abolish the ABOS high stakes exams for recertification. This Advisory Opinion was approved and has been sent to the AAOS BOD.
The 2017 WOA Annual Meeting (August 2-5) on Kauai is fast approaching and the resort rooms are nearly filled. While it marks the Association’s ‘every third year’ return to Hawaii, this meeting is particularly exciting for me and my family.
As a complex case manager for the State Insurance Fund of the state of Idaho, I have seen over the last 7 years the body mass index (BMI) creep up for knee patients with many cases now hitting 40’s or 50’s!
As an aging athlete and ardent skier, it was only a matter of time before I needed a replacement joint.
Many years ago, as a San Francisco Orthopaedic Program resident, I felt gratified and inspired after winning a WOA Vernon P. Thompson Award.
A surgeon performs a left total knee replacement and implants a right femoral component. The error is not noted until after the cement sets. The patient’s ROM and patellar tracking is felt to be reasonable. The incorrect implant is left in position. The patient has a “good” ROM, but is having ongoing pain.
For the last 7 years, Republicans have anticipated repealing and replacing the Affordable Care Act (ACA). With a new administration, major changes to the ACA seemed inevitable. How is it then that House Speaker Paul Ryan recently declared that “Obamacare is the law of the land”? Suffice it to say that health care is such a polarizing issue that even the Republican House could not agree on how to disagree on aspects of the ACA ranging from essential benefits to subsidies.
Helping, guiding, advising, and sharing are some of the words that describe mentoring. This complex and multidimensional process with ancient roots has become especially popular over the past 25 years. Mentors engage their protégées in supportive relationships designed to improve awareness, avoid problems, and enrich experiences.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) recently made a final decision not to move total knee replacement from the Inpatient Only (IPO) list. The decision denies Medicare recipients the opportunity to have their knee replacement surgery in any outpatient surgery center, despite the growing trend across the country to perform more joint replacement surgeries in an outpatient setting.
Fragility fractures affect about 2.5 million people yearly in the United States and millions more worldwide. Once a fragility fracture occurs, there is 50% likelihood that another fracture will take place. In fact, 50% of hip fracture patients have had a prior fragility fracture. As orthopaedic surgeons, we have the opportunity to significantly impact the number of second fractures and the morbidity associated with these fractures. Every fragility fracture patient, including the 45-year-old with a distal radius fragility fracture, should have an osteoporosis evaluation, and/or discussions about bone health, calcium, Vitamin D, weight bearing exercises, home safety, etc.
Orthopaedic surgeons are provided with opportunities to teach and learn practically every day. Teaching fuels the drive to increase our knowledge base about a subject so to more thoroughly impart lessons learned. Educating colleagues, patients, and ourselves is an obligation and a privilege. The educational process can nurture relationships as the learner becomes aware of the time, effort, and patience required to optimize the process. A great teacher stimulates the learner to seek more information.
It is fortunate that WOA is well represented on the AAOS Board of Councilors (BOC). The BOC serves many functions—one of which is lobbying Congress on behalf of fellow orthopaedists. Bryan Moon (Texas) is doing a great job as the official BOC WOA Representative. Several WOA Board Members have served and others currently serve in the capacity of BOC state representatives.
It has been said that orthopaedic surgeons make bad pilots and bad business people. Our reputation in business is changing as we work toward lower cost, higher quality care and as we help to develop new care delivery models. One such evolving model is Orthopaedic Urgent Care Centers.
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