What is one tried-and-true sign of a quality event? It withstands the test of time.
Such is the case with the much-lauded Current Concepts in Joint Replacement® (CCJR®) bi-annual educational forums, events that have gathered so much support over the years that they have essentially become THE place to go for arthroplasty education.
CCJR, attracts over 3,000 delegates from more than 60 countries on an ongoing basis. Late last year, Dr. A. Seth Greenwald, founder of these dynamic meetings, sold CCJR to The Hip Society and The Knee Society.
A Rocky Start
Calling his very first CCJR meeting a “shot in the dark,” Dr. Greenwald told OTW, “A mere 28 people showed up (including faculty).”
But Seth Greenwald had resilience before it was “a thing.”
Indeed, while most would have abandoned such seeming folly, Dr. Greenwald was gifted with grit and singleness of purpose. And it didn’t hurt to have a little Disney magic in the air…
“After the first meeting in Orlando, CCJR really took off,” says Dr. Greenwald.
Passing of the Torch
“Since 1983 we have held 36 meetings in Orlando, 19 in Las Vegas, and one in Cleveland. Our international meetings have occurred because I have been approached by surgeons from different countries to bring CCJR to them.”
“CCJR in China had about 1,000 attendees—we were unprepared for that and actually had to call in security for ‘crowd control.’ Our other international meetings were held in Greece and Brazil, the latter of which included two live surgery transmissions from the Hospital for Special Surgery.”
With an impressive participation history and reputation behind it, CCJR was naturally on the radar of those who want to grow the arena of arthroplasty education.
Douglas E. Padgett, M.D., president of The Hip Society, told OTW, “This new relationship is a natural one as its mission aligns with that of The Hip Society, namely, a focus on education. Much of what we have done to date has been in the form of a ‘specialty day’ at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS).”
“When we undertook a strategic retreat approximately two years ago, we explored ways to expand the reach of the organization as far as education. CCJR readily came to mind.”
Robert L. Barrack, M.D., president of The Knee Society, explained to OTW how CCJR compliments The Knee Society, “I have been involved with CCJR since the early years and have watched it grow into the largest arthroplasty meeting in the world, not just in the number of participants and its quality and impact, but in the number of countries represented.”
“During the most recent Knee Society executive retreat what emerged was a decision that our major priority was to lead the way in arthroplasty education. While that has always been one of our primary goals, the society has matured and now we have a lot of leaders who were actually the founders who are retiring, and we are now into the second and third generation of leaders in the world of arthroplasty. It is important to get these emerging leaders at the forefront of arthroplasty education. So, our education mandate is more important than ever.”
