Greetings from the students of AOAO! Many of us are just finishing boards and preparing for the upcoming season of audition rotations. As we head into the audition and interview season, we have the opportunity to look back on the past months and years we have spent preparing, as well as look forward optimistically to the match. The student board has been working on helping and preparing students for a successful match season.
At the Postgraduate Seminar in May, the students held lectures and information sessions focusing on what students need to know in preparation of audition rotations. In attendance were students in their first year through third, with most of the students attending an AOAO conference for the first time. Prior to the seminar, we held a scholarship essay contest with a $200 prize that was awarded to one of the students in attendance.
We started our meetings off with Skype sessions featuring Emily Tan, the founder of whitecoatcoaching.com who presented a fracture lecture teaching the basics of properly reading and presenting x-rays. We had the opportunity to hear from AOAO Executive Director, Dr. Lee Vander Lugt, who gave an informative update on the status of the single accreditation process. He generously spent time (after being swarmed by students) answering questions and giving advice and guidance to everyone there. On Saturday we held a Program Director panel, in which six program directors took time away from their conference and the beautiful southern California weather, to talk about their programs and answer many of our questions. Several residents generously helped by hosting a splinting and suturing skills session, which was followed by a resident panel Q&A. The success of our conference was due largely to the help we received from our guest speakers and participants, so we would like to thank all those that generously donated their time and talent to help us arrange a meaningful session for all the students.
We are continuing to make progress with reaching out to all the individual chapters and establishing a national roster. We still have much work to do with this project, but we are getting responses and slowly assembling a national roster. We are looking forward to the next school year to increase student membership and introduce new activities to garner interest and involvement from students.
During their May meeting, the AOAO Board of Directors voted to approve the addition of a student representative to their board. The AOAO membership had the opportunity to vote their approval. If approved, students will be represented on the AOAO Board by the SAOAO President who will participate in board meetings, lend a voice for the student membership, and assist with furthering the mission of AOAO. As students, we could not be more excited about this. This will allow the students to have a direct avenue of communication with the board to relay information.
I had the opportunity to sit down and visit with Dr. Vander Lugt to talk about some of the issues facing osteopathic students going into orthopedic surgery. During this time of transition, it is imperative to have an organization that works to preserve our interests and represent us on a national level. We are grateful to have the backing and confidence of the AOAO leadership and members to continue providing meaningful opportunities for students preparing for careers in orthopedic surgery to learn and grow.
Thank you all for your continued support and I hope you have a happy and safe Summer!