Celebrating the professional lives of orthopedic surgeons

Professionalism is an ongoing process that entails continuing to learn, to listen and to give back.

Issue: December 2004

ByDouglas W. Jackson, MD

Douglas W. Jackson, MD [photo] --- Douglas W. Jackson, Chief Medical Editor

This is the time of year for celebrating and making special acknowledgements for many different reasons and occasions. Starting the upcoming season, we raised a toast at the recent Orthopedics Today NY 2004 meeting in recognition of the professionalism of orthopedic surgeons. This toast recognized what a privilege it is to be an orthopedic surgeon and to be associated with outstanding professional colleagues.

With this privilege comes much responsibility. Among the responsibilities is continually updating our professional education and surgical skills to enable us to give the highest quality of care to our patients. Your commitment to patient care was reinforced to me when mingling with the attendees and faculty at our recent November course. It brought back to me what a pleasure and privilege it has been meeting with many of you over the years as part of my considerable travels to numerous orthopedics related activities in this country.

I have always found orthopedic surgeons to be motivated, and you are motivational to me when you share what you are doing within and outside our profession. As a rule, orthopedic surgeons are the type of people I enjoy spending time with and discussing professional and personal success.

Our professional success

Trying to define professional success in any field or endeavor is quite relative. Each person measures success differently. When it comes to measuring the successful professional life of an orthopedic surgeon, the impact of our professional lives on the care of our patients is certainly at the top of the list. Put aside the trappings of “big success” (i.e., a big house, big bank account, big toys and other big material things). What I have learned from you and from my practice is that patient care is the main measure of our professional success.

In assessing the success we can really enjoy, there are some basic questions: Are we making a difference in the lives of our patients? Is our practice the way we want it to be to achieve the patient care we want to give? Is going to work professionally stimulating and satisfying? If the answers are yes, you can be considered a successful professional.

Strong obligation to give their best

However, professionalism is not just a matter of reaching a certain level and then treading water. The true professional feels a strong obligation to continually give their best efforts not only to their patients, to their colleagues and to the health care team around them but also to society in general. Professionalism is an ongoing process that entails continuing to learn, to listen and to give back.

Based on the times I have spent talking with you in person and in groups, listening to your presentations and reading your publications and letters, I am convinced that most of you have a successful professional life. We all have much in common in our quest and have gone through many of the same experiences.

Our younger colleagues are currently going through the early stages of the hard work, sacrifice and at times difficult decisions that is part of it. This hard work begins in our youth during our undergraduate education and continues after we are accepted to medical school and then a residency, followed perhaps by further study and training. Finally, we enter practice and then it may take five or 10 more years to develop the type of clinical practice that we desire.

During this holiday season, I want to take a moment and celebrate and recognize our great profession and those professionals who have gone before us that made much of where we are today possible. In addition, I celebrate and recognize those of you who are currently serving and those professionals yet to come. Because of you and others, it is easier to serve our patients and to feel part of a dynamic and exciting field.