Last week, our medical staff and researchers attended the 2017 EPOSNA conference in Barcelona, Spain. This inaugural meeting combined two established pediatric orthopedic societies, POSNA (Pediatric Orthopaedic Society of North America) and EPOS (European Pediatric Orthopaedic Society) to foster education and research on a global scale.

Scottish Rite Hospital had a tremendous showing with presentations throughout the four-day meeting. The hospital returned from Spain with two of the three major awards given at the meeting – Best Quality, Safety, Value Initiative (QSVI) presentation and Best Basic Science Research podium presentation. Staff Orthopedist, Amy L. McIntosh, M.D., and Director of Performance Improvement, Kerry Wilder, received the QSVI award on their work in quality improvement regarding reductions in surgical site infections (SSI) in patients undergoing spine surgery. This is a great accomplishment as this is the first quality improvement award the hospital has won at an international meeting. Staff orthopedist, Lawson A.B Copley, M.D., received the award for Best Basic Science Paper for his research work on acute hematogeonous osteomyelitis (AHO), which is a bone infection that is most commonly caused by bacteria called, Staphylococcus aureus. Copley and his team conducted a thorough analysis of bacterial virulence genes (genes responsible for causing infection) isolated from children with osteomyelitis to determine which ones were associated with a severe illness.

The 2017 EPOSNA combined meeting provided a great opportunity for our staff to learn and present their work to fellow medical professionals from around the world. Research and education continues to be at the forefront to help answer the challenging questions we face and is critical in carrying out the hospital’s mission to ultimately provide the very best care to our patients and children everywhere.