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AAOS Elects UCSF Orthopedic Surgeon to Board of Directors

April 19, 2007
Contact: News Office (415) 476-2557

Dr. Kevin Bozic, who studies new techniques to improve function and quality of life following joint replacement surgery, has been named a member of the board of directors of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS).

Bozic is assistant professor in residence in the Department of Orthopedic Surgery and the Institute for Health Policy Studies at UCSF.

He completed the AAOS Leadership Fellows Program in 2004-2005, and has served on the AAOS Coding, Coverage, and Reimbursement Committee and the Evidence Based Practice Committee since then.

After finishing his residency in orthopedic surgery at Harvard Medical School, Bozic realized that although he felt well-trained in the technical aspects of orthopedic surgery, he knew very little about the business of medicine. He took off two years from medicine to pursue a full-time master's in business at Harvard Business School. Bozic believes that his business education has helped him become a better physician and a better leader.

"My business education gave me a different perspective on health care delivery than I was taught during my medical training," he said. "Physicians are faced with numerous challenges in today's marketplace. There is greater competition, a renewed focus on consumerism, and a demand for more accountability among health care providers. We are confronted with higher practice expenses and declining reimbursements. But in the midst of these pressures, it is critical that we remain focused on our primary goal: to deliver high-quality orthopedic care to our patients. I view the challenges faced by organized health care today as an opportunity to improve the quality and efficiency of health care delivery in the United States."

Bozic completed his residency in orthopedic surgery in the Harvard Combined Orthopedic Surgery Residency Program in 1999, before pursuing his master's. He then completed a fellowship in adult reconstructive surgery at Rush Medical Center in Chicago in 2002. In 2006, Bozic was awarded the prestigious Orthopedic Research and Education Foundation Clinical Research Award for his work in evaluating resource utilization in total joint replacement, which ultimately led to major health policy changes within the Medicare program.

He is widely published in peer-reviewed publications, textbooks, case studies and reviews on subjects related to clinical orthopaedics, health policy and health care economics.

Founded in 1933, the AAOS is the preeminent provider of musculoskeletal education to orthopedic surgeons and others in the world.

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