What exactly does ARCOS stand for?

ARCOS is the acronym for “Association of Residency Coordinators in Orthopaedic Surgery”. ARCOS is a national, independent, professional, not for profit organization established by and composed of orthopaedic surgery residency and fellowship coordinators to provide an educational resource and an interactive platform for the exchange of ideas to enhance education and to meet ongoing requirements established for orthopaedic surgery residency and fellowship training programs. A coordinator is defined by the ACGME (PR Ortho II.C) and ARCOS as “a lead administrative person, frequently referred to as a program coordinator, administrator, or as titled by the institution.” This person will frequently manage the day-to-day operations of the program and serve as an important liaison with learners, faculty, and other staff members, and the ACGME. “Individuals serving in this role are recognized as program coordinators by the ACGME.”

Could you give some background about how ARCOS got started?

The idea of forming a specialty group for orthopaedic surgery residency coordinators was discussed for a number of years before it was actually attempted and developed into ARCOS. It was officially established in New Orleans, Louisiana in February 2002 by a gathering of volunteer residency coordinators representing a variety of orthopaedic surgery programs. The initiative for ARCOS was encouraged and supported by Frederick N. Meyer, MD, Professor and Chairman of Orthopaedic Surgery at the University of South Alabama in Mobile, Alabama.

I am a fellowship coordinator for an orthopaedic sub-specialty, is there anything presented at the ARCOS annual meetings that could apply to me and help me in my job?

ARCOS strives to include presenters and topics that are interesting and informative to all orthopaedic surgery coordinators. The membership of ARCOS consists of many fellowship coordinators who work alongside the residency coordinator of their program: in fact, fellowship and residency coordinators in the same program often arrange to attend the ARCOS annual meeting together! In addition, we are finding more and more coordinators who assume both roles of fellowship and residency duties. Networking with other fellowship coordinators who attend ARCOS conferences not only stimulates interest but provides valuable contact information as well.

How does ARCOS go about selecting speakers for meetings?

Speaker selection is sometimes the direct result of the comments and/or suggestions you have made on the ARCOS Post-Conference survey each year. We are fortunate to have a board of directors who work together to make suggestions for speakers, topics, and sessions at the ARCOS Conference.

What is the annual fee for ARCOS membership DUES and how many coordinators are members of ARCOS?

Annual membership dues for ARCOS are $275 and membership extends from July – June each year. ARCOS Membership is collected per institution. For example, a single membership fee covers all orthopaedic coordinators’ dues (fellowship and residency) at their institution. ARCOS is now over 250 members strong and growing!

I may be interested in becoming a member of the ARCOS Board of Directors. Who should I contact if I have questions?

Any member of the ARCOS Board of Directors would be happy to discuss how you can become a member of the board! The immediate past president of ARCOS officially oversees and manages the ARCOS election process. To contact the immediate past president, please refer to the Contact Us tab on the website
(www.arcosonline.org).