Support for Your Partner in Practice 

Kevin G. S. Orrell, M.D., FRCSC
Sydney, NS

James P. Waddell, M.D., FRCSC
Toronto, ON

C. Stewart Wright, M.D., FRCSC
Toronto, ON

The following is from a letter sent to the COA membership from the Foundation Board's surgeon-members. Your help is urgently needed and gratefully received. Donations can be made, with our many thanks, on line at www.canorth.org.

At this year's Annual Meeting, attendees reported surprise to learn about the many ways the Canadian Orthopaedic Foundation supports orthopaedic surgeons. A number of the Foundation's current annual activities were initiated long ago, and are today living legacies:

• The R.I. Harris Lecture, first given in 1966.
• The J. Édouard Samson Award, first awarded in 1967.
• The Anica Bitenc Fellowship, established in 1985.
• The Macnab Lecture, first given in 1994.
• The Canadian Orthopaedic Research Legacy, established in 2005.

The way the Foundation operates has changed considerably in its almost 45 years - so much so that you may barely recognize it. The Foundation was established in 1965 as a private foundation of the COA, a legal designation that, simply put, means the Foundation raised money to give it away, from or to a single source. By raising and giving money from and to many sources through the Hip Hip Hooray! campaign, the Foundation became a public charity. This requires the delivery of programs that are of direct value to the public, and was the impetus for major changes.

In developing its public programs, the Foundation asks how they can support every surgeon in Canada and make for smoother days in practices. They do this by putting resources into the hands of patients that help you to be more productive. And, they've done that with input from surgeons, and with the review of their Medical & Scientific Review Committee who ensure accuracy, reliability and national relevance.

Thousands of patients are already using the Ortho Connect peer support program, the "Planning for Maximal Results" booklet for TKA/TKA patients, and the OrthoLink educational newsletter. All of these are available directly to patients by phone, mail and at www.canorth.org. If you have ideas for specific ways to help all orthopaedic surgeons through patients, call the Foundation. Their goal is to be of value to you.

With the economic downturn, the Canadian Orthopaedic Foundation is in a position today where your support is needed more than ever. Consider making a donation today so that they can maintain their support of surgeons' practices, and do more to make it easier for us to look after Canadians.

The Foundation's volunteers, staff, and Board of Directors have a deep respect and appreciation for just how life-changing the work of orthopaedic surgeons is to Canadians. While surgeons are hard at work on today's patients, the Foundation hears from tomorrow's patients who call with the hope that they, too, will become again active, vibrant members of their families, workplaces, communities and of society. We all devote our time to the Foundation inspired by the positive impact of orthopaedic treatment on Canadian patients.

The Canadian Orthopaedic Foundation was created to be your foundation, and is still your foundation: striving to make things better for you.