Introduction: Tips for Success.

Abstract

Welcome to the Young Practitioners' Forum (YPF) supplement 2015. This is the fourth annual supplement and coincides with the ninth annual YPF in conjunction with the OTA Annual Meeting. The supplement came to reality with the support of Roy Sanders' suggestion. We are grateful to Zimmer for the continued support of this endeavor. What is important about the YPF? It is a resource where residents, fellows, and junior faculty can turn for advice and information when seeking a fellowship or beginning a career. Some residents are fortunate to have built-in mentors in their residency and/or their fellowship. There are others who decide that they want to pursue a career in trauma and really have no one to turn to for advice. Additionally, the topics covered throughout the years have addressed issues relevant to all orthopaedic surgeons entering practice and not just future traumatologists. As a whole, the Young Practitioners are a very important group as they represent the future of the organization. What has changed in 2015 most markedly compared with previous years is that the orthopaedic trauma fellowship match had the lowest number of applicants since 2007! For years we have been discussing, “Are we training too many trauma fellows?” (This was a previous keynote address at the YPF). The changing landscape regarding jobs is reflected in the postfellowship surveys. In the past, the majority of fellows were entering academic medicine; becoming hospital employed was never discussed. Now up to one-third of graduates from fellowship programs are hospital employees. We offer alternative guidelines to help one succeed in each setting. The YPF and supplement has tried to address the changing demands on those beginning a career. In this year's supplement, we cover several topics, which we think are important to the Young Practitioner in 2015 and beyond. We first begin with, “Do Politics Matters to the Orthopaedic Surgeon? (They Should!).” It is important to be aware of the relationship between advocacy, politics, and clinical practice. The Affordable Care Act and Obama Care impact our practices now and in the future, and we all need to be aware of this. Another hot topic we are covering is, “Social Media and How to Use It Effectively.” Methods of communication have changed dramatically over the past decade, and social media has permeated through the walls of the practice of medicine. Sometimes, we find ourselves reflecting back, “If I only would have known…” We have an article, “If I can turn back time, what I would do differently,” to hopefully prevent having to answer that question. After all the years in training, being forced to follow someone else's lead, it is a very different situation to be the one in charge. Residents often think that they cannot wait until this happens with no knowledge of the significant challenges that lie ahead. “Now that I'm in Charge” gives some advice so that you do not regret what you do in your early days. Another daunting situation in medicine is the possibility of being sued. The question then is, “I Was Served: What Do I Do?” Our article covers that and helps prepare you should that happen. Many of you attend the YPF and the OTA Annual Meeting and see many podium and poster presentations. None of them happens without research. We cover “How to get started in research” in various job settings. Finally, we get to the personal side because your life is not 100% your job. We have an article on, “The challenges of balance when both of you work.” This is an excellent article by a husband and wife physician team that is easily applicable to anyone who has a spouse who works and deals with the unpredictable lifestyle (at times) of a surgeon. And finally, we end with the wisdom of Tony Russell (past OTA President) who discusses, “What really matters.” This year, I would like to introduce Jodi Siegel, as Co-Chair of the YPF and Co-editor of this supplement. Welcome!