Trustee to AAO
Dr. Gayle Glenn
Someone once said "Life is what happens when you are making other plans." That quote certainly describes the changes in events planned by the AAO this year! When hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast last August, AAO President Mel DeSoto had to make a difficult decision. He chose to move the 106th Annual Session of the America Association of Orthodontists from New Orleans to Las Vegas. Dr. DeSoto and the AAO staff not only had to make all new arrangements for up to 18,000 people to attend the meeting in Las Vegas, but had to cancel all of the arrangements that had previously been secured in New Orleans.
Another schedule change for the AAO came about when the U.S. Congress voted to call a March recess during our scheduled AAO Governmental Affairs Conference in Washington, D.C. Since most of the legislators and their staffs planned to be away from the capital during the recess, our legislative consultants recommended that the AAO cancel the March conference and reschedule for a later date. The current plan is to have the Governmental Affairs Conference combined with the 2007 Leadership Conference January 28-31, 2007.
"The Orthodontist as CEO" Conference was held in February in Scottsdale, Arizona. This well attended event was organized by the Council on Orthodontic Practice and the Council on Information Technology. A portion of the conference was taped and will be available through Distance Learning in the future.
The Council on Communications will request funding from the 2006 House of Delegates for a Consumer Education Campaign. The objective is to educate consumers about the role of the AAO member orthodontist as a dental specialist. The message is based on the results of quantitative and qualitative research, which was conducted by using members of the target audience-mothers of potential patients. The requested amount is $3.87 million to finance the creation and placement of ads. If approved, the $3.87 million will be partially recouped through a $450 member assessment, as proposed to the House of Delegates last year. Watch for your DVD on this topic in the March issue of "The Bulletin."
The Education Resolution, originally proposed by Dr. DeSoto, will also come before the 2006 House of Delegates. This resolution would allocate $2 million in funding to augment faculty salaries and benefits at all accredited postgraduate orthodontic residency programs in the USA and Canada. If this resolution is passed, it could require a dues increase of up to $222 per member. Contact your SWSO delegates if you have questions or comments about the pending resolutions.
Thank you for the honor of serving as the SWSO Trustee. It has been a great pleasure to work with Dr. Mel DeSoto during his year as AAO President. His dedication to our profession is inspiring, and his leadership skills are second to none.