September 2008 • Vol. 4, No. 4
	Advancing Orthotic and Prosthetic Care Through Knowledge

Continuing the Tradition of Preparing Future Leaders

As I begin my duties as president of the Academy, the change is somehow anticlimactic. The reason is that as Wendy Beattie, CPO, FAAOP, completes her term as your president and I begin mine, the transition will be seamless and perhaps almost unnoticed. Why?

Academy leadership long ago recognized the importance of continuity in the sense that leadership changes do not necessarily signal changes in direction or priority.

The Executive Committee some time ago made a commitment to ensure that future leaders would be mentored by the previous leaders in preparation for their opportunity to serve. We are confident in our positions, where you, our members, want us to be, and what ultimately distinguishes the Academy professional from the rest of our profession. That stability reduces the significance of the "changing of the guard." I look ahead with excitement as I begin my term and we move forward to what will be a great year.

The Academy views the challenges faced by our profession through the filter of the five pillars contained in our mission statement. I'd like to revisit those pillars, but first I'd like to differentiate who we are. We are "professionals advancing care through knowledge." In this world, where knowledge is available virtually anywhere, we commit to improve the service we offer our patients through a continuous search for knowledge. In the midst of paying salaries, going through the accreditation process, and dealing with shrinking reimbursement, we strive to improve care. This is the hallmark of a professional and what distinguishes us from others. The Academy's mission is "to promote high standards in patient care through advocacy, education, literature, research, and collaboration."

As professionals, we advocate for the rights of our patients to receive care from qualified individuals and to choose who those individuals are. We believe payers should cover prosthetic and orthotic devices as necessary medical care because maximizing functional independence is not only good for the individual, but it is also good for our communities, our society, and our nation. Education is the cornerstone of who we are and what we do. Our Annual Meeting is the preeminent educational conference in the profession and continues to elevate the standards of education. The Paul E. Leimkuehler Online Learning Center (OLC) offers excellent education opportunities without the travel and expense required of more traditional models and creates a perpetual personal reference library for the professional seeking to learn. Go to an Academy chapter meeting and you'll experience more of the same with a local flavor and have the opportunity to network with local professionals like yourself, sharing your struggles and successes.

If the body of knowledge defines a profession, literature is vital to our continued existence. The Academy, through publication of the Journal of Prosthetics and Orthotics (JPO), brings orthotic and prosthetic literature to your doorstep. The JPO is the only journal dedicated to the scientific publication of literature from and for our profession. Our new editor, David Boone, PhD, CP, LP, and the editorial staff at the JPO look forward to another strong year and more successes through strategic collaborations. Since the inception of the federal grant, the Academy has completed eight State-of-the-Science Conferences and published the findings. We have collected and reviewed the relevant literature on each specific topic and posed the questions still unanswered for future research in each specialty. With evidence-based practice on the horizon, our profession is faced with the challenge to develop and document its body of knowledge through effective research and publication. The establishment of the Orthotic and Prosthetic Education and Research Foundation is a first step. Intended as an independent entity to support research and education in O&P, this foundation will help to fulfill the future needs of orthotic and prosthetic students, educators, and researchers. In the meantime, we continue to work with the other organizations in our profession to support and develop meaningful research in O&P and maintain an ongoing dialogue with the research community.

As with any small organization, a key strategy for success is collaboration. The Academy's involvement in the O&P Alliance allows effective communication and collaboration with other organizations within our profession in pursuit of our mutual goals. Collaboration with other allied health professionals remains a strategy to ensure that the Academy professional is well represented and recognized.

Recently the Academy Board of Directors attended a strategic planning retreat. During this exciting weekend, we envisioned the next three years and beyond of Academy initiatives. As these visions make their way into the council structure and begin to take root, I look forward to keeping you informed of our progress.

As I look to the year ahead, I do not know who will emerge as future Academy leaders, but I am confident that they will be capable and prepared to guide our organization through to its mission. I thank you for the confidence you have shown in me and pledge to continue the tradition of preparing future leaders.