Kern Singh, M.D.: Spine Committee Chair for AAOS Meetings

Kern Singh, M.D., co-director of the Minimally Invasive Spine Institute at Midwest Orthopaedics at Rush, will serve as Spine Program Committee Chair for the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) Annual Meetings (2017-2020).

“Overseeing the spine section of the largest orthopedic society in the world is a tremendous honor, ” Dr. Singh said in the December 12, 2016 news release. “With all the advances in minimally invasive procedures and outpatient spine surgeries, it’s an exciting time to be in the field. I look forward to bringing spine leaders together to share the latest research and innovations and helping to advance the spine industry in the U.S.”

Dr. Singh specializes in minimally invasive spine surgery and outpatient spine surgery, and is a veteran at designing new minimally invasive spinal instrumentation. He frequently teaches minimally invasive techniques to neurosurgeons and spinal surgeons from around the world.

Asked about his educational priorities going forward, Dr. Singh told OTW, “My educational priorities are centered on increased resident and student engagement. In order to increase engagement, the field of orthopaedic spine surgery must become more accessible. This can be achieved by the production of educational materials, such as operative videos, online content, and textbooks that are geared towards teaching the fundamentals that are necessary for residents and students. Furthermore, fostering resident and student involvement in primary research is an absolute necessity. This generation will provide the innovations that will promote the continuous advancement of this field. As such, we must do all we can to ensure that future practitioners in our field are trained appropriately to perform high-quality research in both a collaborative and ethical manner.”

“One early goal is to foster more collaboration between surgeons in our field. By doing so, we will be able to more easily produce high-quality prospective studies that will have significant implications on clinical practice patterns. Furthermore, we will also work on improving outreach regarding important developments in the field to both the medical community and the general public. Part of this will involve creating and maintaining a significant social media presence to disseminate information to the widest population possible. This will also involve an increase in the availability of educational materials for the public. By improving the knowledge base of the general population, the public will be able to better understand the obstacles and necessary research in this constantly growing field.”