She is the youngest AAOS Diversity Award recipient and founder and executive director of Nth Dimensions Educational Solutions, a partnership with AAOS to develop and facilitate pipeline initiatives to diversify the future physician workforce in orthopedics and other specialties.
The organization has several goals, including:
• Increase diversity in medicine
• Decrease gender and health disparities
• Promote professional development of aspiring minority physicians in orthopedic surgery
The program includes giving exposure to hands-on orthopedic experience, both clinical and research-based, as well as mentoring and leadership development. There are around 175 students who have participated in the Nth Dimensions/AAOS Orthopaedic Summer Interns program, with 75 percent of the scholars in 2012 matched in an orthopedic residency program.
“The idea is that as we increase the number of physicians who reflect the U.S. population, we decrease health disparities and improve outcomes and, ultimately, lower the cost of care,” said Dr. Simpson Mason.
In addition to her work with Nth Dimensions, Dr. Simpson Mason also speaks nationally to women’s and physician groups about leadership, diversity, business of medicine and integration topics. She is a leader in AAOS and the Ruth Jackson Orthopaedic Society as well as the mentoring chair for the Robert Gladden Orthopaedic Society.
She earned her medical degree at Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta and completed her orthopedic residency at Howard University Hospital in Washington, DC. She had a clinical practice and served as CFO at Grant Orthopaedic Bone and Joint Surgeons before being diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis and shifting her career focus to mentoring and helping young women and minorities to pursue orthopedics.
More articles on orthopedic surgery:
AAOS elects Dr. Howard Epps to board of directors
Dr. Wallace Weatherly joins Beauregard Memorial Hospital
More young Americans undergo hip surgery, hip surgeons down 28.8%
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