The International Shoulder Safari
Ofer Levy hosted a shoulder conference in Israel in November 2018, the International Shoulder Safari, held from 11 to 18 November.
The scientific sessions were case-based, which generated a good deal of discussion. Over a week-long meeting the attendees also had the opportunity to visit a number of historical sites.
With thanks to Ofer Levy for organising it.
Why case based sessions work
A case based session presents an actual patient, with their history and imaging, and asks the room what they would do before revealing what was done. It is a different exercise from a conference paper. A paper reports a group of patients treated one way and what followed. A case discussion exposes the reasoning, including the points at which experienced surgeons disagree.
That disagreement is the useful part. Where everyone in the room would do the same thing there is little to discuss. Where opinions divide, the reasons usually come down to how much weight is given to the patient's age and activity, the condition of the tendons and bone, which implants are available, and the surgeon's own experience with each option. Individual results vary.
Why surgeons attend international meetings
Shoulder surgery is a field in which practice differs between countries for reasons that are not purely scientific. Different implants are approved and available, health systems fund treatment differently, and training traditions vary. Meeting surgeons from other systems is one of the more reliable ways of identifying the assumptions built into your own practice.
Longer meetings have a particular value here. A week spent with the same group allows a discussion to continue outside the sessions and across several days, which is where the detail tends to emerge. It is also how the working relationships behind joint research and exchanges of fellows begin.
Related information
See also our post on Professor Ofer Levy, and our shoulder surgery and shoulder injuries pages.