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Case Study: Art of Healing |
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Publication
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Faced
with the challenge of educating consumers about the orthopedic surgery
profession and demonstrating how orthopedic surgeons care for their patients
and communities, the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons (AAOS)
developed an innovative and successful solution. The organization would tell
the story of orthopedics in an innovative way and show that doctors are
caring, compassionate people by developing a traveling art exhibit.
With more than 24,000 members, AAOS is the world’s largest and most influential medical organization of orthopedic surgeons. The organization’s mission charges it to provide education and practice management services for orthopedic surgeons and allied health professionals, to serve as an advocate for improved patient care, and to inform the public about the science of orthopedics. AAOS conducted research to gauge the public’s knowledge about the orthopedic surgery profession that showed not only that there was a broad lack of knowledge about the profession, but also a lack of familiarity with orthopedic surgeons themselves. Indeed, the surgeons were not widely viewed as the caring, professional physicians that they are. Subsequently, AAOS set out to develop a public relations program to define and inform the public about the profession and show that orthopedic surgeons care. In April 2000, a call for entries went out to artists worldwide, asking those who currently have or have ever experienced an orthopedic condition to submit their work and tell their stories for a themed art exhibit, eMotion Pictures: An Exhibition of Orthopedics in Art. Both adult artists and children were asked to share their art that illustrated — but was not necessarily figurative or representational — some aspect of the artist’s feeling toward or relationship with his or her orthopedic condition. For example, artists expressed feelings about healing, fear, rehabilitation, anger, self-image, mobility, frustration, strength, pain, weakness, movement, body image, hope, wellness, freedom, and independence. A similar call for entries was issued to orthopedic surgeons, seeking artwork that illustrated some aspect of the orthopedic surgeon’s feeling about the patient/physician partnership — making a difference in the lives of patients, their motivation for becoming an orthopedic surgeon, practicing the art of healing, frustration, outcomes, or compassion. The response was overwhelming. More than 1,400 entries were received from 17 countries and 43 states, telling about a broad spectrum of orthopedic conditions. Orthopedic surgeons told of their frustrations with a sometimes less-than-perfect result, and spoke of their commitment to the patients they care for. The artists’ words were strong, and the artwork was powerful. eMotion Pictures: An Exhibition of Orthopedics in Art opened at the Herbst International Exhibition Hall at the San Francisco Presidio, from February 19 to March 20, 2001. Additional exhibitions are planned throughout the year. Since orthopedic surgeons often treat children who have been injured on playgrounds and children with disabilities, AAOS also implemented a community service aspect to its campaign that puts surgeons to work building safe and accessible playgrounds in its annual meeting host city. Partnering with industry, local municipal/community organizations and affiliated professional groups, AAOS members create a place where children with and without disabilities are able to play together in a safe, accessible, supportive, and festive atmosphere. The process behind the exhibit (emotionpictures.aaos.org), now an AAOS permanent collection, involved the following steps:
The marketing phase involved a global campaign during which AAOS staff sent call-for-entry packages to every orthopedic surgeon in the United States. The doctors were asked to forward the material to patients to solicit their entries. Also, the doctors themselves were asked to submit entries focused on the themes of why they chose the orthopedic surgery profession and their feelings about patients. AAOS received more than 1,400 entries from the United States and abroad. Prior to beginning the review process, AAOS sought the advice of art show professionals and adopted their best practices to condense the intimidating number of entries, which included the following media:
The screening methodology involved an elimination round to select entries that exhibited the highest technical quality. The remaining 250 of 1,400 entries were carefully reviewed. A jury of art professionals had the difficult task of selecting the artwork for exhibit. The jury included David Ross, director of the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art; Joseph McCullough, president emeritus of the Cleveland Institute of Art; and John Killacky, executive director of the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. The show features 167 works of art from 132 artists. According to Sandy Gordon, AAOS director of public and media relations, the exhibit involved intricate logistical challenges. Including curators, numerous vendors were also involved in organizing furniture, security, lighting, shipping, garbage, and cleaning. In addition, the exhibit was staffed for one month. AAOS had not anticipated the overwhelming response that the exhibit would generate from its members and the public. The success in San Francisco launched a traveling road show, with stops in Washington, DC and subsequent exhibits planned in Chicago, Illinois, New York City, and Great Britain. The team effort involved in the monumental and unprecedented undertaking was extensive. The public response to the exhibit was overwhelming, and the result was beyond the wildest expectations of anyone at AAOS. Once the exhibit was ready, the audience was mesmerized. Yaacov Agam, the world-famous Israeli artist and founder of the kinetic art movement, appeared to talk about his hip replacement. Each piece of art told the individual artist’s story, and spoke about what patients and doctors meant to one another. AAOS published all of the successful entries and their stories in a beautifully bound coffee table volume. Ultimately the exhibit was a testament to the impact that orthopedic surgeons have on people’s lives and gave the doctors involved a tremendous sense of pride. It showed them in vivid detail how they have contributed to giving people their quality of life back. The lessons that AAOS learned throughout this process were both practical and deeply personal:
The exhibit energized AAOS members. Staff members responsible for organizing the show were uniformly gratified by the opportunity to be involved in doing something meaningful. Gordon’s advice to other associations is to "know your audience and the story that you are trying to tell. Learn to think outside the box." |
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Reprinted by Permission