A recent article in Podiatry Management magazine
has caused a bit of a controversy. One of our
American Academy of Podiatric Sports Medicine
members wrote an article on running form and
shoe types. The Academy's logo was inserted at
the beginning of the article leading many to
believe that we were endorsing this individual's
thoughts. This article lead to many phone
conversations and Internet correspondence.
The reality is that the author was just
expressing his ideas. As an Academy, we applaud
those members who are willing to share their
knowledge through writing. This is where it gets
interesting. The AAPSM also strongly urges our
writers to follow the practice of utilizing
evidence based research when representing the
Academy. In this article much of what was being
conveyed was anecdotal.
This article was not published in a peer-
reviewed journal, so in this instance it was
fair game for the author to share his opinions.
Please understand however that his views do not
necessarily reflect those of the Academy as a
whole.
What have we learned from these events?
Primarily, Sports Podiatry, like all of medicine
is part science and part art. It is the reader's
responsibility to digest all of what they read
and come out with their own conclusions.
We also learned that our members are passionate
about their beliefs and will fight for what they
deem to be correct. At the end of the day, I
think this is a win win for the Academy.
Although we are a small organization, we embody
many talented sports medicine physicians with
varied perspectives.
This Academy is always trying to remain relevant
to our membership. Our Board has heard your
thoughts through our recent survey and we are
implementing actions. In the next year you will
see several standalone meetings. At these forums
individuals will be able to network and share
and debate philosophies openly.
We may never see eye to eye on many subjects but
the fact that we are still enthusiastic about
our craft is exciting.
Robert M. Conenello, DPM, President, American
Academy of Podiatric Sports Medicine,
rmconenello@aol.com
