LOS ANGELES (PRWEB)
June 09, 2022

Dr. Mark H. Getelman, orthopedic surgeon and sports medicine specialist at Southern California Orthopedic Institute, recently completed his term as President of the Arthroscopy Association of North America (AANA). He offers insights on the accomplishments and evolution of this society of leaders in arthroscopy that recently celebrated its 40th anniversary.

Q: How many years have you been active with AANA?

A: I joined AANA over 20 years ago and have greatly enjoyed my time as a member. I became involved early on serving on several committees and especially enjoyed serving on the Fellowship and Education committees.

Q: What other positions have you held in AANA?

A: After being a committee member, I became the Chairman of the fellowship committee where, along with John Richmond and Pat St Pierre, I helped create and grow the AANA traveling fellowship program. In addition, I personally developed the online self-assessment exam program, ASAP, and was the editor in chief of the first exam we created. I have chaired the Council on Education and have also served as Chairman of the Development Committee raising record high donations from individual members. I joined the Board of Directors in 2013 and was elected to the executive board as Secretary in 2017. I served two years as Secretary before joining the presidential line as second vice president in 2019.

Q: Why did you pursue leadership roles in this specific organization?

A: Unlike other societies which can have a more intimidating feel, AANA has a warm and welcoming, family-like atmosphere. I felt most a part of this society and, as such, began committee work. Once I saw the value that the organization brought to its membership, I became more involved. AANA is a meritocracy, and the hard work and dedication is recognized and rewarded with advancement.

Q: What were the biggest challenges you faced as the leader of AANA and how did you overcome them?

A: As a president during the pandemic, clearly the biggest challenge to society and the medical field has been COVID-19. At AANA, we were unable to have an independent annual meeting since 2019 and as such to remain relevant, we had to expand our online opportunities and work to engage our membership. We expanded our webinar program and launched and grew the DocMatter community. Even without an annual meeting in 2021, we granted over 15,000 hours of CME for our members.

Orthopedics as a subspecialty faces the greatest discrepancy in terms of diversity equity and inclusion. We have developed a task force to address this and improving DEI was a cornerstone of my presidency. We have addressed this on several fronts. As we began to emerge from the pandemic and have in person meetings, we expanded the opportunities for females and those underrepresented in medicine to serve as faculty. This past March, under my leadership, AANA became the first AAOS subspecialty society to ever partner with the Ruth Jackson orthopedic Society, founded in 1983 to improve opportunities for women orthopedic surgeons.

Q: What do you consider your biggest accomplishments while president?

A: We had a very successful year, and made strides in education, advocacy, and DEI. We led a 40th anniversary campaign to grow the AANA education foundation. We set a goal of raising $4 million in honor of our 40th anniversary and I am pleased to say that we exceeded the goal raising nearly $4.4 million with donations, legacy pledges, and industry grants. In addition, we created a 40th anniversary Monograph book which was edited by Jon Ticker, MD and just released at our annual meeting this month. It is a wonderful tribute to AANA.

The biggest advancement was towards diversity equity and inclusion moving forward. I am proud to announce that AANA will be starting a new program for female and underrepresented in medicine medical students to expose them to arthroscopy and orthopedics as a career. We secured a $1 million grant from Depuy Synthes Mitek Sports Medicine to help us develop this program over the next three years. By exposing medical students early in their training ahead of their inflection point, it is our hope that we will begin to move the needle encouraging more females and those underrepresented to enter the field of orthopedics.

Q: How do you see AANA evolving in the future?

A: AANA is the leader in worldwide education of arthroscopy and minimally invasive surgery. We currently have 6000 members, and I anticipate we will continue to grow. It is our goal to grow worldwide and to help educate our members around the globe. I do think we will remain a leader as it pertains to diversity equity and inclusion, and it is my hope that when we celebrate our 50th anniversary, we will no longer be needing to consider DEI as an issue.

Q: What did you enjoy most about serving as president of AANA?

A: AANA is an incredible organization, and I was so fortunate to be surrounded by an outstanding Board of Directors and presidential line who made my year as president so special. Our CEO, Laura Downes, is an outstanding leader and she has created an incredible team at our headquarters in Rosemont, IL. Working with Laura has made my job as president so enjoyable and achievable while still having my “day job”.

The opportunity to lead this organization was the highlight of my professional career. Being able to make advancements for our members with regards to advocacy, education, skills assessment and diversity, equity and inclusion makes me very proud, and I feel that I have advanced our society. I look forward to seeing incredible growth from the initiatives we established this year.

Q: What advice would you give future leaders of AANA?

A: AANA has an enormous talent pool, and I think it is most important to surround yourself with bright, energetic, and passionate members who share your vision yet challenge you to be better and grow. The Board of Directors has that group of visionaries and I anticipate that the future leaders will continue to make great strides benefiting our members and improving education in the field of arthroscopy and minimally invasive surgery.

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About Mark H. Getelman, MD, FAANA:

Dr. Mark Getelman is a double board-certified orthopedic surgeon and sports medicine specialist who practices at the Southern California Orthopedic Institute located in greater Los Angeles, California with offices in Van Nuys and Thousand Oaks serving the San Fernando and Conejo Valley communities. Consistently recommended by his peers in the medical field and by former patients, Dr. Getelman specializes in disorders of the shoulder and knee, as well as cartilage reconstruction and sports medicine. Utilizing both arthroscopic and minimally invasive open surgical techniques, he strives to keep all patients active and healthy with state-of-the-art treatments that allow for rapid recovery.