AGENDA
Moderator: John Lane, MD
| 7:00 AM | Registration Breakfast/Networking with Exhibitors |
Santa Barbara Ballroom |
| 7:15 AM | Exhibitor-Sponsored Educational Session A Case-Based Review of Xiaflex Endo, USA a Keenova Pharmaceutical company |
Richard Braun, MD |
| 8:00 AM | Practical Issues for QMEs/AMEs What to Look for In the Medical Records What’s Your Obligation in Reviewing Medical Records? What to do if you Don’t Receive the Relevant Medical Records When Can a Supplemental Report Be Requested Should you Offer an Opinion on Injuries Outside of the MSK Injuries? Represented vs. Unrepresented Injured Workers COA Medical-Legal Report Template Q&A |
Michael Klassen, MD |
| 8:20 AM | “Skin and Contents” Evaluations – How to Sort Out Relevant Injuries “Glow in the Dark” Medicine – When is it Appropriate to Order Diagnostic Imaging Testing Q&A |
Carl Jacobs, Esq. Defense Attorney |
| 8:40 AM | How Handling Evaluations for Firefighters/Police Officers are Different | Beth Williams, Esq. Applicant Attorney |
| 9:00 AM | Top 12 Rating Conundrums Within the 4 Corners of the AMA Guides – Part I Roundtable Discussion with Audience Input 1. Plantar fasciitis 2. Lateral epicondylitis 3. Nonoperative treatment of menicus tears 4. Chondral defects of the knee 5. Cubital tunnel syndrome/carpal tunnel syndrome with or without diagnostic study confirmations |
John Lane, MD Michael Klassen, MD Dori Cage, MD |
| 10:00 AM | Break/Networking with Exhibitors | |
| 10:30 AM | Top 12 Rating Conundrums Within the 4 Corners of the AMA Guides -Part II Roundtable Discussion with Audience Input 6. Chronic tendinitis (bicipital, tendinitis, proximal,or distal) 7. DeQuervains tenosynovitis 8. Forearm tendinitis confirmed with MRI consistent with tenosynovitis (ulnar findings on MRI with subluxation of the ECU but full motion and pain 9. Patient has substantial restrictions, but only 2% impairment 10. Jamar grip loss in a patient with pain and is more or less one year post-surgery 11. Wrist Fractures – grip loss 12. Ankle lntar flexion weakness/Achilles |
John Lane, MD Michael Klassen, MD Dori Cage, MD |
| 11:45 AM | Working Lunch | |
| 12:00 PM | Exhibitor-Sponsored Educational Session Complying with Labor Code Section 4628 when using AI in the Forensic Record Review |
Fred Kumetz – eData |
| 12:30 PM | DWC Is Reviewing Your Reports – What Are They Finding? Q&A |
Sue Honor, DWC* |
| 1:00 PM | Kite,Vigil, and Almaraz-Guzman Case Law How Does the Effects of ADLs Affect Applying Vigil? Handout: 31 ADL Questionnaire How do you Assess Levels of Pain? Handout: Pain Chart How do you decide whether the case applies? Handout: Case Law Reference Sheets If applying the case, how do provide the justification in your report? Q&A |
Beth Williams, Esq. Applicant Attorney Carl Jacobs, Esq. Defense Attorney |
| 2:15 PM | Judges’ Perspective on Important Case Law Q&A |
Beth Williams, Esq. |
| 2:30 PM | Break/Networking with Exhibitors | |
| 3:00 PM | Practical Apportionment Tips for the Evaluating Orthopedic Surgeon in the California Worker’s Compensation System – Tips and Tricks Welcome and Introduction Legal Foundation of Apportionment From a Defense Attorney’s View Legal Foundation of Apportionment From an Applicant Attorney’s View Panel Discussion: Six Common Mistakes Made by Evaluating Physicians Ten Examples of Common Apportionment Issues for the Evaluating Orthopedic Surgeon Q&A |
David Wood, MD Carl Jacobs, Esq. Defense Attorney Beth Williams, Esq. Applicant Attorney |
| 4:30 PM | Handling Causation in Post Termination Cases Q&A |
Beth Williams, Esq. Applicant Attorney Carl Jacobs, Esq. Defense Attorney |
| 4:45 PM | Depositions What Attorneys Need out of a Deposition How to Prepare for and Respond to Attorney Questions What Will Trip You Up in a Depo – Using an Optic Scanner/Historian and Only Looking at the Summary of the Medical Records Don’t Be Unreasonable in Scheduling Depo Why Asking to Go Off Record is a Bad Idea Is it Okay to Change Your Opinion? Q&A |
Beth Williams, Esq. Applicant Attorney Carl Jacobs, Esq. Defense Attorne |
| 5:30 PM | We All Bring Our Own Biases to an Evaluation – Providing a Fair Evaluation to the Injured Worker Q&A |
Lesley Anderson, M.D. |
| 6:00 PM | Adjournment |
*Invited not yet confirmed
Program Co-Chairs: Jeffrey Smith, MD, Kartheek Reddy, MD
| 7:00 AM | Registration/Breakfast | Santa Barbara Ballroom |
| 7:30 AM | Exhibitor-Sponsored Educational Session Staffing for Doctors |
Michael Tabuso |
| 8:00 AM | COA Advocacy Efforts on Your Behalf | Moderator: Russell Nord, MD Ryan Spencer, COA Lobbyist |
| 8:30 AM | Our Experience with CMS Episodes of Care Model | Nicholas Abidi MD Steven Bast, MD |
| 8:50 AM | Building the Boutique Orthopedic Practice: Designing a Patient-Centric Experience That Commands Cash-Pay Value | Nick Mast, MD. Lisa Marie Wark, PhD, MBA |
| 9:10 AM | Dropping Insurance Without Dropping Patients: The Blueprint for a Cash-Based Orthopedic Practice | Nick Mast, MD. Lisa Marie Wark, PhD, MBA |
| 9:30 AM | CMS 2026 Coding Update | Cathy McDowell, KZA |
| 10:00 AM | Break Networking with Exhibitors | |
| 10:30 AM | Conversation on Surgeon Burnout, Moral Injury, and More Partner perspectives on practice stress. Avoiding poor family outcomes through personal introspection and honest communication. |
Moderator: Jeffrey M. Smith, MD, PCC Richard Barry, MDRamon Jimenez, MD |
| 11:20 AM | Co-Management Agreements – How to Successfully Negotiate With Your Hospital to be Paid for Services You Are Performing | Wendy Wong, MD |
| 11:40 AM | Federal Legislative Update | Kelly McCone, MPA, AAOS |
| 12:00 PM | Lunch & Breakout Workgroups How do I make my practice sustainable long-term? How do I thrive inside a large system? How do I balance multiple professional roles? What does the next phase of my career look like? How do I design a career I actually want? |
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| 1:00 PM | Ergonomic Modifications Reinvigorating Surgeon Health | Mary Allan, MOT, OTR/L, CHT |
| 1:20 PM | Trauma-Informed Care | Caryn Lindsey, DSWc, LCSW |
| Trauma & Fracture Care | Moderator: Todd Swenning | |
| 1:50 PM | Reinventing / Reengineering Trauma Care | Todd Swenning, MD |
| 1:10 PM | Just Breathe | Jeffrey M. Smith, MD, PCC |
| 2:10 PM | What is the Role of an In-Clinic Social Worker, Why is This Important | Caryn Lindsey, LCSW, PMH-C |
| 2:15 PM | Trauma Pearls for the General Orthopaedist Practice Pearls Clinical Pearls |
Moderator: Todd Swenning, MD Kartheek Reddy, MD Timothy Craft, MD Emily Benson, MD |
| 3:15 PM | Break Networking with Exhibitors | |
| 3:45 PM | Foot & Ankle Care Practice Pearls Clinical Pearls |
Moderator: Keith Donatto, MD Nicholas Abidi, MD Eric Giza, MD Philip Kaiser, MD |
| 4:45 PM | Hand / Upper Extremity Care Practice Pearls Clinical Pearls |
Moderator: Christopher Bayne, MD Jacob Gire, MD Leo Kroonen, MD Marie Dusch, MD |
| 5:40 PM | Reinvigorating – The 7th Inning Stretch | Jeffrey M. Smith, MD, PCC |
| 5:45 PM | Presidential Speaker A 50 Year Reflection on Hand Surgery and a Vision of the Next 50 |
Roy Meals, MD |
| 6:15 PM | Presidential Reception | Plaza del Sol – Hilton Hotel |
Program Co-Chairs: Jeffrey Smith, MD, Kartheek Reddy, MD
| 6:00 AM | 5K Run | Meet in hotel lobby |
| 7:00 AM | Registration/Breakfast | Santa Barbara Ballroom |
| Exhibitor-Sponsored Educational Sessions Clinical CBD – Integrating Clinical Grade CBD into Orthopedic Practice – Corganics |
Alexander Sah, MD | |
| 7:15 AM | Exhibitor-Sponsored Educational Sessions An Oral Therapy for Treating Moderate to Severe Acute Pain – Vertex Pharmaceuticals |
Alexander Sah, MD |
| 7:45 AM | Resident Award Papers | Robert Slater, Jr., MD Jeffrey Smith, MD |
| 7:47 AM | J. Harold LaBriola, M.D. Award Combined Root And Body (CRAB) Lateral Meniscus Tears in the Adolescent Population: An Underrecognized and Underreported |
Karch Smith, MD UC San Diego |
| 7:52 AM | Lloyd Taylor, M.D., Award Under-prescribed and Underutilized: National Trends in Osteopo-rosis Medication Use After Fragility Fracture |
Harsh Wadhwa, MD Stanford |
| 7:57 AM | Luskin Orthopaedic Institute for Children Award Correction of Fixed Knee Flexion Deformity in Patients with Cere-bral Palsy Using Suture Anchors for Anterior Distal Femur Hemi-epiphysiodesis |
Mathangi Sridharan, MD UCLA |
| 8:02 AM | OREF Award A Video-Based Intervention for Increasing Health Literacy in Total Joint Arthroplasty Patients at a Safety-Net Hospital: A Prospective Single-Blind Cohort Study |
Sung Jun Son, MD LA County Harbor |
| 8:07 AM | Q&A | |
| Reinvigorating MSK Research & Innovation | ||
| 8:15 AM | Reinvigorating MSK Research | Lee Grossman, OREF |
| 8:25 AM | Research in the Private Practice Setting | John Lane, MD |
| 8:35 AM | Reinventing – Orthopaedic Innovation | Aenor Sawyer, MD |
| 8:50 AM | Reinventing the Orthopaedic Surgeon | Jeffrey M Smith, MD, PCC |
| 9:00 AM | Keynote Speaker Lessons from Space: What Orthopods Can Learn from Astronauts |
Catherine (“Cady”) Coleman, PhD |
| 10:00 AM | Break/Networking with Exhibitors | |
| 10:30 AM | Beyond the Hype: Proven Clinical Value of AI in Orthopaedics | Meir Marmor, MD |
| 10:50 AM | What Should Board Certification Really Look Like? | Derek Moore, MD |
| 11:10 AM | ASC Strategies to Optimize Mutual Benefits | Paul Sasaura, MD |
| 11:30 AM | In-Office Orthopedic Ultrasound –Clinical Applications and Hands -On Training – Esoate | Joseph McGinley, MD, PhD |
| 12:00 PM | Adjournment | |
| 12:15 PM | Resident and Young Ortho Roundtable Lunch and Discussion | |
| 1:00 PM | Golf Tournament | Michael Klassen, MD |
| 2:00 PM | Pickleball Tournament Gala Dinner – Moxi Museum |
Ed Diao, MD |
| 5:00 PM | Museum Exploration | Sponsor:  |
| 6:00 PM | Dinner on the Rooftop of the Museum |
Program Co-Chairs: Jeffrey Smith, MD, Kartheek Reddy, MD
| 7:00 AM | Registration | |
| 7:00 AM | Business Meeting – Election of New COA Officers | Santa Barbara Ballroom |
| 7:30 AM | Exhibitor-Sponsored Educational Session Heron Therapeutics |
Alexander Sah, M.D. |
| 8:00 AM | COA Resident Award Papers | Robert Slater, Jr., MD Kartheek Reddy, MD |
| 8:02 AM | Performance of ChatGPT Versus Spine Surgeons as an Emergency Department Spine Call Consultant | Taha Taka, MD, Loma Linda |
| 8:06 AM | Fractures in the System: Local Voices and Global Strategies for Orthopaedic Reform in Nigeria | Kelechi Nwachuku, MD, UC San Francisco |
| 8:10 AM | Patients Receiving GLP-1 Agonists Have Reduced Odds of Pseudoarthrosis Following Lumbar Decompression and Fusion | Abhinav Sharma, MD, UC Irvine |
| 8:14 AM | MRI Anatomic Analysis of Patients with Brachial Plexus Birth Palsy | Jourdan Meltzer, MD, Cedars Sinai |
| 8:18 AM | Lateral Extra-Articular Procedures Increase Risk of Arthrofibrosis After ACL Reconstruction in Adolescents: A Multi-Institutional Propensity Matched Study | Christopher Hamad, MD, UCLA |
| 8:22 AM | How Safe Are Minimally Invasive Photodynamic Intramedullary Implants? | Christian Chalmers, MD; UC Irvine |
| 8:25 AM | Research in the Private Practice Setting | John Lane, MD |
| 8:26 AM | Q&A | |
| 8:30 AM | AI in Orthopaedic Education | Derek Moore, MD |
| 8:45 AM | Reinvigorating – Peak Performance as a Surgeon Tools for Self Care to Optimize Patient Care Longevity in the Era of High Volume Joint Replacement Surgery |
James Chen, MD |
| 9:00 AM | Radiation Safety Unique to Orthopaedics | Isabel Newton, MD |
| 10:00 AM | Break Arthroplasty / Joint Preservation |
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| 10:15 AM | Diagnosis and Management of Gluteus Medius and Minimus Tendon Tears | Mauro Giordani, MD |
| 10:30 AM | Arthroplasty Practice Pearls Clinical Pearls |
Moderator: Jennifer van Warmerdam, MD Nick Mast, MD James Chen, MD Paul Sasaura, MD |
| 11:30 AM | Orthobiologics | Tal David, MD |
| 12:00 PM | Sports Medicine Pearls for the General Orthopaedist Practice Pearls Clinical Pearls |
Moderator: Tal David, MD Samera Kasim, DO James Bailey, MD |
| 12:45 PM | Final Raffle | |
| 1:00 PM | Adjournment |