Community Development
Annual Report 2019
Community Development Officer's word
Michael Dittmar
Dear colleagues,
I started in this new and challenging position of Community Development in the middle of last year. I worked in this exact same position 10 years ago, but the world and the means of communication have changed drastically since then (for better or for worse). Having good and reliable information is not easy, and I believe that this is the challenge we have been working on over the years. In Latin America, the AO Spine needs to be a valid and reliable source of information for colleagues in the whole region.
Digital technologies have increased our awareness about medical innovation, technologies and the latest scientific research. As part of this transformation, the AO Foundation launched MyAO to offer members enriched, individualized, and unified digital access to everything that the AO has to offer.
Important topics, such as the environment, gender equality, and human rights, must lead our actions on the way to provide the best solutions to the world we live in. In 2019 we launched a new brand, which shows that we are globally engaged, that we are active, and that we strive for excellence in everything we do to further our mission.
In the future, we aim to keep innovating ourselves, so we can fight misinformation, and continue to be an excellent source of knowledge.
Global membership overview
Asia Pacific
Europe and Southern Africa
Latin America
North America
Middle East and Northern Africa
Latin America Members Trend 2014-2019
Latin America Cumulative retention 2014-2019
Membership by Country 2019
Brazil
Mexico
Argentina
Colombia
Chile
Peru
Venezuela
Ecuador
Dominican Rep.
Panamá
Others
Congresses
and exhibitions
Participation in events all over Latin America is an important way to present the organization and a great opportunity to contact our members. The support of the local chapters was essential for planning national events and to communicate them to the local public. The additional presence of international key opinion leaders at many of our events was a further factor that caught the attention of our public.
New brand
AO Spine has a new look
The AO has a new look and feel online. The digital rebranding has given our online presence a much-needed new look. The AO Spine website and our key social media pages: Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, have been rebranded in this new fresh, bold design.
This is a significant milestone in our digital transformation, and in AO Spine‘s evolution, as we seek to ensure we remain relevant to younger generations of surgeons across the world who share our mission.
Transitioning to the new brand is a gradual process, and for the next months you will see both old and new branding used. The AO Davos Courses 2019, the AO’s flagship educational event, was the first to move fully to the new branding.
