IAOS to Continue New Meeting Schedule and Format Eugene C. Wittenstrom, M.D. As you know, from our previous newsletter in the winter of 1999, our President, Dr. Dangles, informed us of the new schedule and to continue with at least two educational meetings a year along with our new status as a 501C6 political organization. Dr. Dangles responded last year with scheduling two meetings. He has already presented one in Champaign at the Carl Clinic on April 7, which was a superb meeting. The main emphasis of this meeting was on allografts in orthopaedics. For those of you who went, I am sure you realized how important a meeting this was starting with Dr. Steven Gitelis, M.D., Past President of the IAOS, presenting an overall view of allografts and also the science and collection of allografts in his work with the Robi Bone Bank. We had an excellent turnout. At the same time we had an Executive Board Meeting followed at noon by a buffet lunch for all of the attendees at the meeting. The second meeting of the year is scheduled for June 23 through June 25 with the Second Annual Chicago Trauma Symposium at the Sheraton Chicago Hotel and Towers situated in the Chicago Loop. As you know, from the recent letter from Dr. Dangles, being a member of the IAOS affords you a reduced rate of $350.00 as compared to the full rate of $650.00 for physicians. You have already received brochures on this and, as you can see, it looks like a tremendous meeting for us to hone up on our trauma skills. For next year, we are hoping to continue the two-program format, having one in the fall of this year in the Chicago area. We're hoping to connect this with either a subspecialty group or with a visiting professor at one of our universities in town. As far as the spring meeting is concerned, we are again hoping to move this meeting to a Central Illinois State area, such as this past one in April, to avail the Central Orthopaedic Society Members access to an important meeting also. Now that we have become a 501C6 organization, we can become more politically active and we are working on the structure of the new association to make up committees. At these meetings, we can also have committee meetings and committee reports to help keep us up to date on what is happening to our practices and to needs other than educational purposes for our practice of orthopaedic surgery. As Dr. Dangles asked in the last newsletter, I am again asking for members who are interested in being on the Educational Committee. I would be very happy to have them participate in this committee. If you are interested, please contact a member of the IAOS Executive Committee and, in the meantime, we will be calling many of you to see if you could help us out also. We are hoping that this new format will better represent you in the changing social political climate of orthopaedics. We are also trying to preserve what the Society has built up over these many years, and that is a truly outstanding educational program that would entice more and more people to come to our meetings. We are working hard now trying to line these future meetings up so that we will have plenty of advance warning and excess time to make the meetings both here in Chicago and possibly downstate.   Return to the IAOS Newsletter Educational Meetings and Program | Board of Directors | Residency | Find a Surgeon | Membership | Allied Association Links | Newsletter | Governmental Affairs | IAOS Main Page All material Copyright from the Illinois Association of Orthopaedic Surgeons, all rights reserved.