I was very fortunate to be able to attend the Tri-Association Conferences in Las Vegas last month, which you can read about on page 10. Though I’ve been reading about them in our newsmagazine for years, this was my first close-up view of these United Spinalsupported meetings for doctors, nurses, and psychologists and social workers who care for people with spinal cord disorders (SCD). I wish you all could have been there.
The conferences were established half a century ago to give clinicians-the people who treat SCD-the chance to gain firsthand knowledge about cutting-edge research in SCD medicine from the researchers themselves. As a non-technical observer, I was surprised to find myself riveted to almost all of the presentations I witnessed. I learned a lot about secondary conditions associated with paralysis, about psychosocial issues for people with SCD and their family caregivers, even about the special skills required to attend to a dying patient.
There’s a saying, “What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas.” That’s not the case with the knowledge shared at these conferences, which travels back to SCI centers all over the country. Jim Peters, the late executive director of United Spinal’s founding organization, used to remind members each year that the ultimate beneficiary of these meetings was the person whose care was improved by them. That’s why he invested so much of this organization into supporting both research and the conferences where the results of that research were disseminated.
After a more than 20 year run at the Riviera Hotel in Las Vegas, the conferences will move next year to the Gaylord Palms in Orlando, Florida. Even better news for members of this association is that they will incorporate a component for “consumers”-for instance, you. I hope many of you will consider attending them, so you can experience the thrill of the knowledge transfer. Look for more information in upcoming issues.
Christofer D. Pierson
Managing Editor
