ORTHOPEDICS THIS WEEK VOLUME 13 , ISSUE 5 | FEBRUARY 14 , 2017 15 ington , DC . Co-chairing the event were Andrew Schmidt , M . D . and Major Daniel Stinner , M . D . Dr . Schmidt is chief of orthopedics at Hennepin County Medical Center in Minneapolis , Minnesota .
He told OTW , “ Each year the meeting has a different focus that reflects current issues relating to caring for extremity injuries , ranging from aspects of the injuries themselves as well as the logistic problems related to caring for a high volume of severely injured soldiers in austere locations .”
“ As the War on Terror has evolved , so have the problems that our military colleagues face , and this meeting has changed over the years as well . More recent meetings have reviewed issues related to amputation and rehabilitation of the injured soldier , as well as challenges in maintaining the competency of the military health system as future conflicts become less centralized .”
“ This year ’ s symposium was entitled , ‘ Homeland Defense as a Translation of War Lessons Learned ,’ and will also focus on the treatment of mass casualties in a civilian environment related to intentional violence or a natural disaster .”
“ As war changes , so must the planning for treating casualties .”
“ As the War on Terror evolves , we may not be able to maintain a concentration of military bases where hospitals can be placed .” Explains Dr . Schmidt , “ Similarly , in future terrorist attacks and natural disasters , there may not be any nearby medical infrastructure to care for the injured . Thus , the challenges that our military health system has been facing in Afghanistan and Iraq might be very similar to what we could face here at home in a mass casualty incidence . Hence , the ‘ lessons learned ’ by our military colleagues during the last decade are of great importance to all of us .”
According to Dr . Schmidt , “ Our goal is to provide a venue where researchers can present and discuss their work , and come to consensus about what knowledge gaps remain . Such questions may pertain to specific injuries or complications , rehabilitation , and healthcare delivery .”
“ This year we started out with a keynote session on a National Academies report that was published this past summer . The report highlighted the accomplishments of the military system in improving combat casualty care , and suggested that this model can be used nationwide as a model for improving health care delivery .”
“ Our military found itself in a situation in mid 2000 with a suddenly large burden of combat casualties , most of whom had severe injuries due to improvised explosive devices , and they had to improve care as things were evolving … there was no time to conduct clinical trials and evaluate the results before making changes . During the first several years of the War on Terror , our military colleagues were able achieve a survival rate of nearly 90 %, the highest ever among combat casualties , despite caring for more severe injuries than they had ever seen .”
“ The Academies ’ report calls for military and civilian sites to partner to adopt a nationwide continuous quality improvement model similar to the military ’ s , which dovetails with Medicare ’ s ‘ Pay for quality and value ’ initiative . The report focused on reducing preventable death , but while we are saving lives , we will have even greater numbers of disabled persons . So , we want to shine a light on the importance of minimizing the burden of disability as well . This has huge implications for the country as a whole ; someone who can ’ t work must be cared for or retrained … this issue has many complexities .”
“ Later in the meeting we also addressed topics in tactical medicine , such as casualty evacuation during a tactical situation , how to improve the delivery of care when away from a medical center , the role of the orthopedic surgeon in triage , etc . We will have surgeons speaking who treated victims of the Boston marathon bombing and the Orlando nightclub shooting .”
“ Most importantly , this meeting has high visibility to policymakers in Washington , DC . This is an important meeting for setting a research agenda for musculoskeletal trauma , and the best marker of the success of this event is continued DOD funding for extremity trauma research .”
Andrews Institute Renovates Surgical Skills Lab Those fortunate enough to train with esteemed orthopedic surgeon James “ Jimmy ” Andrews , M . D . now have revamped facilities in which to learn . The Andrews Research & Education Foundation ( AREF ) Surgical Skills Lab at Andrews Institute for Orthopaedics & Sports Medicine has recently undergone a renovation that will allow physicians to practice arthroscopic and other surgeries .
“ The renovations and added equipment to the surgical skills lab greatly increase the quality of both educational and research capabilities of the lab ,” said Steve Fleck , Ph . D ., executive director of AREF , in the December 8 , 2016 news release . “ This increases AREF ’ s ability to provide the best possible service to all health professionals who utilize the surgical skills lab to increase their professional preparation through education and research .”
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