Dear ASES Members:

             Hard to believe for many, including me, that the end of 2024 is already here! December is a month to reflect and enjoy all the good things that happened this year, and also to gear up for a new and exciting 2025.

In this monthly message, I thought I would summarize educational opportunities that will be conducted in 2025 by American Shoulder & Elbow Surgeons, with many of you as participants (Faculty, attendees or contributors in other ways). As you will see, every month there is at least one face to face or online ASES program for the benefit of our members and other individuals interested in shoulder and elbow care. Hopefully this information will help you organize your time so that you can enjoy what ASES has to offer.

Specialty Day. Traditionally, American Shoulder & Elbow Surgeons holds an open educational meeting at the same time and location of the Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons. In 2025, ASES will join efforts with the Arthroscopy Association of North America (AANA). The combined ASES-AANA program will be held in a single auditorium from 7:00 to 10:30 am PST. Each Society will then run a parallel program from 11:00 am to 1:30 PST. Only one registration is required to participate in all sessions by both Societies, depending on your interests. Remember that you can already register here, where you can also review the scientific program created under the leadership of Drs. Ciccone, Spiker, Frank and O’Brien as Co-Chairs.

Mentor-Mentee Program. A joint effort between the ASES Early Career Engagement and Mentorship Subcommittee and the ASES Foundation, this is a program where ASES members who volunteer to serve as mentors get together with individuals who applied to be mentored. Education is centered around practice management, research infrastructure, leadership opportunities, and similar topics. Every year, a Mentor Mentee Meeting is conducted in partnership with one device company, and for 2025 we are very grateful that Catalyst has offered their support for this meeting.

National Shoulder & Elbow Week. Another activity organized by the American Shoulder & Elbow Surgeons Foundation, this is a great opportunity to bring awareness to the public beyond our members of the importance of shoulder and elbow health. Please visit our website to learn more about activities conducted simultaneously in several locations (Baltimore, Gainesville, Chicago, Cleveland, Dallas, Los Angeles, San Antonio and St Louis) as an opportunity for networking, collaboration, collegiality and fund-raising.

Revision Shoulder Arthroplasty Course. This will be the first edition of a brand-new Course directed by Drs. Surena Namdari and Vahid Entezari. ASES members know that revision of failed shoulder arthroplasty is expected to become an increasingly common procedure, and our Society is positioned to be at the forefront of education as it relates to failed shoulder arthroplasty. In the words of Drs. Namdari and Entezari, “This immersive two-day event is designed for surgeons with shoulder arthroplasty experience who are eager to take their revision skills to the next level. Attendees will learn from world-renowned arthroplasty surgeons through an engaging curriculum that covers every aspect of revision arthroplasty, including preoperative planning and cadaver laboratory sessions featuring all major implant systems.” ASES members, please note that this is a cadaver-based course to be held at Five Labs in Atlanta, and attendance will be limited and on a first-come, first-serve basis. Registration will open early next year, stay tuned!

Fellows’ Day. For years, ASES has partnered with the San Diego Shoulder Institute to hold a one-day program where fellows about to graduate can present their favorite research project of the year and listen to the sage advice of selected ASES members. This represents and incredible opportunity to help our fellows transition into independent practice and remain connected with ASES after graduation. Best paper and best posters are awarded the Hawkins Fellow and Cofield Fellow Award. ASES partners with industry for scholarship funding and fellow attendees are also invited by SDSI to attend the whole San Diego Shoulder Course for free. If you are ASES member and will be attending the SDSI Course, please consider attending the ASES Fellows’ Day as well!

Annual Meeting. In October 2025, we will all get together at the beautiful Gaylord Pacific waterfront property in San Diego. We truly want to reimagine our premier educational event to add experiential and networking opportunities to a robust cutting-edge educational program. Drs. Jonathan Barlow and Robert Hartzler are already working hard on each and every aspect of the annual meeting. Please mark your calendars to come to the one event of the year when we all have the chance to get together as an organization. You will not be disappointed!

Shoulder & Elbow Course for Residents and Fellows. November is the perfect time of the year to provide a unique cadaver-based educational experience to our own fellows as well as those residents interested in shoulder and elbow surgery. This course is limited in numbers due to the need to use cadaveric laboratory stations, and the 2024 edition was sold-out and a complete success. If you are interested in watching some testimonials from the 2024 edition, they are available here. The next edition will be directed by Drs. Gupta, Keener and Muh, and will again take place at the OLC Education and Learning Center in Rosemont, IL.

Webinars. Throughout the year, ASES offers webinars that can be watched livestream but also remain as enduring recorded educational content. For 2025, Drs. Wagner and Klifto have scheduled Virtual Journal Club Webinars on bone blocks for shoulder instability, complications of proximal humerus fractures, rotator cuff augmentation, and complications of elbow trauma. Drs. Sperling and Kassam will moderate Practice Management Webinars on efficiency in clinic and the operating room, financial investment, and branding/social media/credibility. Similarly, Dr. Rodeo and Mr. Simon will moderate Research Webinars on how to conduct randomized clinical trials, develop a clinician-scientist career, and establish a biospecimen repository. All these topics are so timely and great, I can’t wait to watch them all!

             Finally, I would like to wish all ASES members, a wonderful Holiday season filled with joy in the company of your loved ones. Hopefully, all of you can disconnect from work a little and enjoy those other domains of our lives that we some time neglect: family, friends, and personal recovery.

Respectfully yours,

Joaquin Sanchez-Sotelo MD PhD

President, American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons

Consultant and Professor of Orthopedic Surgery

Chair, Division of Shoulder and Elbow Surgery

Mayo Clinic