AOA/CORD will host a virtual Fellowship Directors Forum that will explore the latest outcomes of Signaling in Orthopaedics, best practices in fellow selection, and trends for a new generation of learners. Open to residency and fellowship program directors and coordinators and all leaders in graduate medical education, the webinar offers opportunities to connect across all orthopaedic subspecialties, compare approaches, and discuss solutions to benefit the orthopaedic surgery field.

Info

Date: Wednesday, April 29, 2026

Time: 8:00pm – 9:00pm ET; Virtual

Title: Fellowship Selection and Signaling

Program Chair:

Phillip E. Blazar, MD, FAOA,

Brigham & Women’s Hospital,

Hand & Upper Extremity Fellowship Director

Learning Objectives: 

By the end of this Fellowship Directors Forum Webinar, attendees will be able to: 

  • Define Signaling in the context of Orthopaedic fellowship selection and describe how it differs from traditional application processes 
  • Explain the rationale for signaling used by Orthopaedic fellowships and contrast them to other medical specialties using signaling 
  • Identify access and bias considerations with signaling 
  • Develop individual program strategies for incorporating signaling into their processes. 

Agenda

Webinar Agenda 

 8:00pm – 8:05pm Opening Remarks and Introductions 

Philip E. Blazar, MD, FAOA, Fellowship Directors Forum Webinar Chair, Hand & Upper Extremity, Brigham & Women’s Hospital 

8:05pm – 8:20pm Why Consider Signals for Orthopaedic Subspecialties?
William Hamilton, MD, Anderson Orthopaedic Clinic 

  • Experience in Adult Reconstruction: Why Signaling and First Year Impact 

 8:20pm – 8:35pm Balancing Merit, Fit and Equity in Fellow Selection
Rebecca Cerrato, MD, Mercy Medical Center 

  • Experience in Foot and Ankle: Why Signaling and First Year Impact 

 8:35pm – 8:50pm Redesigning Selection in an Era with Signaling, AI, and Gen Z Learners
Michael J. Weaver, MD, FAOA, (Trauma), Brigham & Women’s Hospital 

 8:50pm – 9:00pm Q&A 

9:00pm Adjourn 

CME

The 2026 Fellowship Directors Forum Webinar has been planned and implemented in accordance with the accreditation requirements and policies of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) through the joint providership of the Journal of Bone & Joint Surgery and the American Orthopaedic Association. The Journal of Bone & Joint Surgery is accredited by the ACCME to provide continuing medical education for physicians. The Journal of Bone & Joint Surgery designates the Fellowship Directors Forum virtual live activity for a maximum of 1.0 AMA PRA Category 1 CME CreditsTM. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity. The American Medical Association has determined that physicians not licensed in the US who participate in these CME activities are eligible for AMA PRA Category 1 CME CreditsTM.