What exactly does ARCOS stand for?

ARCOS is the acronym for “Association of Residency Coordinators in Orthopaedic Surgery”. It is a nationally recognized membership organization for residency and fellowship coordinators and is endorsed by the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons.

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.

How do you determine the city in which ARCOS meetings are held each year?

ARCOS meets in conjunction with the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons and will always meet during the week of the AAOS meeting in the same city.

Why can’t ARCOS give us earlier notification of the meeting hotel?

As you probably know, there are a tremendous number of groups who hold meetings in conjunction with the AAOS. Groups who are endorsed by the AAOS (such as ARCOS) are required to make a formal request to the AAOS for meeting space. Once the request is reviewed, the AAOS assigns the hotel deemed most suitable to meet each groups’ needs. Each year, the meeting hotel information is posted on the ARCOS website (www.arcosonline.org) as soon as it becomes available.

Why can’t ARCOS reserve a block of rooms at the meeting hotel just for ARCOS meeting attendees?

ARCOS approached the AAOS meeting planners with this request. Because there are so many groups who make this same appeal for reserved accommodations, it is not feasible for dedicated blocks of rooms to be set aside for any group: in other words, the AAOS basically supports room reservations on a first-come, first-served basis.

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 a number of 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, networking with other fellowship coordinators who attend ARCOS meetings 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 evaluation forms we ask you to complete during the annual ARCOS meeting. Also, since ARCOS meets in conjunction with the AAOS, we have great access to “the movers and shakers” in the world of orthopaedics!

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

Annual membership dues for ARCOS are $275 and membership extends from January – December each year. ARCOS is now over 100 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 this matter with you; however, the immediate past president of ARCOS officially serves as chairperson for the ARCOS Nominating Committee. This individual can also answer your questions and/or discuss the ARCOS Board of Directors application process with you. Please refer to the homepage of the ARCOS website (www.arcosonline.org) for complete contact information.