HSS Hip and Knee Surgeon Bradford Waddell, MD, Named Chair of Young Arthroplasty Group

NEW YORK, June 14, 2018 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Bradford Waddell, MD, hip and knee surgeon at Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS), has been named chair of the Young Arthroplasty Group (YAG) Committee in the American Association of Hip and Knee Surgeons (AAHKS).

Founded in 1991, the mission of AAHKS is to advance hip and knee patient care through education and advocacy.

"About two years ago, my colleague Dr. Jeff Lange and I sought to connect recently graduated hip and knee fellows for research and collaboration," said Dr. Waddell. "We began with 10 to 12 surgeons, creating this new informal group and then brought the idea to AAHKS, where it has now grown into a larger group and committee."

The mission of YAG is to connect young arthroplasty surgeons (with under 5 years of practice) in order to promote collaboration and young surgeon activity within AAHKS, with a particular focus on research, leadership and advocacy.

At the inaugural YAG meeting at AAHKS' Annual meeting in 2017, over 100 surgeons were in attendance.

Dr. Waddell has been a member of AAHKS since 2014 and began his term as chair on June 1, 2018.  Previously, as a Health Policy Fellow for AAHKS, he was charged with finding new ways to bring younger surgeons into the organization. "Bringing our informal group to AAHKS was the perfect way to fulfill this duty," says Dr. Waddell, who also practices in CT at HSS Stamford.

The YAG Committee's co-founder, Jeffrey Lange, MD, orthopedic surgeon at Brigham and Women's Hospital, serves as vice-chair, with 5 liaisons to different AAHKS committees comprising the rest of the committee.

"This group recruits young arthroplasty surgeons and works to encourage and empower them to take advantage of the full benefits of the organization whether it is in research, advocacy or leadership," added Dr. Waddell. "I'm happy to say we've had 250 surgeons sign up for the group to date!"

Dr. Waddell joined HSS in October 2017; however he was no stranger to the organization as he completed his fellowship at HSS. He specializes in reconstruction of the hip and knee, specifically primary and revision hip and knee replacement. Devoted to getting his patients back to an active lifestyle, Dr. Waddell currently researches patient safety, new technologies and value-based care.

About HSS | Hospital for Special Surgery   
HSS is the world's leading academic medical center focused on musculoskeletal health. At its core is Hospital for Special Surgery, nationally ranked No. 1 in orthopedics (for the eighth consecutive year) and No. 3 in rheumatology by U.S. News & World Report (2017-2018). Founded in 1863, the Hospital has one of the lowest infection rates in the country and was the first in New York State to receive Magnet Recognition for Excellence in Nursing Service from the American Nurses Credentialing Center four consecutive times. The global standard total knee replacement was developed at HSS in 1969. An affiliate of Weill Cornell Medical College, HSS has a main campus in New York City and facilities in New Jersey, Connecticut and in the Long Island and Westchester County regions of New York State. In 2017 HSS provided care to 135,000 patients and performed more than 32,000 surgical procedures.  People from all 50 U.S. states and 80 countries travelled to receive care at HSS. In addition to patient care, HSS leads the field in research, innovation and education. The HSS Research Institute comprises 20 laboratories and 300 staff members focused on leading the advancement of musculoskeletal health through prevention of degeneration, tissue repair and tissue regeneration. The HSS Global Innovation Institute was formed in 2016 to realize the potential of new drugs, therapeutics and devices. The culture of innovation is accelerating at HSS as 130 new idea submissions were made to the Global Innovation Institute in 2017 (almost 3x the submissions in 2015). The HSS Education Institute is the world's leading provider of education on the topic on musculoskeletal health, with its online learning platform offering more than 600 courses to more than 21,000 medical professional members worldwide. Through HSS Global Ventures, the institution is collaborating with medical centers and other organizations to advance the quality and value of musculoskeletal care and to make world-class HSS care more widely accessible nationally and internationally.

SOURCE Hospital for Special Surgery