Page 3 - ISAKOS 2021 Newsletter Volume 1

The COVID-19
Pandemic
Lots has changed and some things haven’t! Some will stay, and some won’t!
The COVID-19 global pandemic has led to many changes in the orthopaedic care of our patients and also our academic lives. In our practices, we have been paying much more attention to healthy habits, including handwashing and staying home when ill. We are also cleaning surfaces carefully and paying more attention to supply chains for medical equipment, in particular, personal protective equipment. The rapid development of safe vaccines has also been unprecedented.
Our education via virtual meetings has suddenly improved access for many. While we look forward to traveling without so many precautions, it has become clear that a lot of our meetings can be held via videoconference to accomplish the goals. It is likely that video conferencing will become a bigger part of our lives in a post COVID-19 world than it was before.
Many things have not changed. The need for continued health care research and advancement has been highlighted recently. The surge in orthopaedic manuscript submissions to our peer-reviewed journals illustrates that even amidst very challenging times, our community continues to strive to advance the science upon which our patient care is based. As well, the commitment and self-sacrifice many healthcare professionals made to save the lives of others, including many of my colleagues at our hospital, has been inspiring. The desire to gather with friends and family is now stronger than ever, and I will never take for granted these opportunities in the future. Gathering with colleagues to connect, learn, teach and build relationships via live meetings is something we all look forward to. The next ISAKOS Congress in Cape Town in November 2021 will provide a great opportunity for that!
Lastly, the ISAKOS Office has adjusted and pivoted to continue to serve our members during these difficult times. They have transitioned to work remotely and have made many changes to their workflow in order to keep costs down while still providing great leadership for our society. That is something that has definitely not changed during these challenging times!
Robert G. Marx, MD
ISAKOS Newsletter Editor 2019–2021
EDITOR’S MESSAGE
ISAKOS NEWSLETTER 2021: VOLUME I 1