Educational Conferences

The Department of Orthopedic Surgery holds educational conferences several times each week from July through June of each academic year.

Conference Details

Grand Rounds are an important part of the resident education program. They allow a resident to focus on a topic of interest (hopefully stimulated by a clinical case), research the topic, and present it to a group of orthopedic surgeons. They also provide an opportunity for the staff to educate the residents on how to prepare effective presentations. Each conference lasts about 45-60 minutes. The format each week includes the presentation of a topic usually by residents under the guidance and supervision of faculty members. Orthopedic faculty, fellows and guest speakers present as well. The target audience includes orthopedic faculty, residents, fellows and local orthopedists. Residents in their fourth and fifth years will present two Grand Rounds per year.

The Residency Program Coordinator must receive an outline with a bibliography for each topic to be presented. The bibliography may be limited to 15 articles and the staff should assist with selecting the 15 best articles. Each resident is responsible for having an outline and bibliography available for distribution on the day of the conference.

Talks should be limited to 30-45 minutes didactic, followed by 10-15 minutes of discussion. Residents should practice their talk to assure that it is within the established time limits.

Basic science instruction allows residents to be both student and teacher. Residents attend the Basic Science Conferences throughout their five-year term in the program. A syllabus for the Basic Science curriculum (aka Required Talks) outlines the material to be covered over the course of a two-year period. The Basic Science schedule covers these various subjects: pathology, biomechanics, anatomy and other basic sciences related to the musculoskeletal system.

Indications Conference relies on the most senior resident on a given service who is responsible for the content and quality of the presentations by all members of that service. Each assigned team is to have a minimum of two cases per month prepared for presentation. The presenters are expected to be well prepared. Incorporation of various media in addition to x-rays, when indicated is encouraged (including videotapes of arthroscopic findings/procedures, histologic slides of pathology cases).

M & M (Mortality and Morbidity) is a detailed conference with x-rays. The most senior resident on each service (including the senior resident rotating at the VAH ) is responsible for the completion of morbidity and mortality reports. Forms are available on the Orthores drive (accessible from the resident library) in the "__forms" folder. The completed form should be emailed to Dr. Prokuski. If you are uncertain of the correct manner in which to complete these forms, please consult the Chief Resident.

Trauma Conferences cover all trauma cases of the week and any other recent trauma case of interest. Emphasis should be placed on complicated cases for which further staff input is sought in order to facilitate management.

Journal Club Meetings are usually held on the third Thursday of every month and take place at one of the faculty member's homes. The conferences often meet at 7:00 or 7:30 p.m. and a snack or light supper is served. The presentation format for these meetings involves the discussion and review of topics and issues from the Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery (JBJS) and other orthopedic journals as designated by the host.

Residents are responsible for reading all articles in a given journal, as well as for articles distributed prior to Journal Club by the host. One month's notice of articles to be covered is usually given via a memo.

Professor's Hour is held once a month by the Program Director. Dr. Zdeblick will gather with all residents for an hour to discuss educational issues and topics of general interest such as ethics, program changes and items of concern to the residents. This conference is generally held on the first Friday morning of the month at 6:30 a.m. in room G5/114.

Service-Specific Conferences for adult reconstruction, hand, and sports medicine are held on a weekly basis to discuss current topics. All residents are required to attend their respective conferences.

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First published: 07/15/02 Last updated: 07/04/08 webmaster@surgery.wisc.edu
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