(Left to Right: Firoz Miyanji, MD, Peter Newton, MD, Suken Shah, MD, Amer Samdani, MD)
The Setting Scoliosis Straight Foundation (SSSF) is proud to announce the appointment of a new leadership team.
Suken A. Shah, MD, Division Chief of the Spine and Scoliosis Service and Clinical Fellowship Director at the Nemours/Alfred I. DuPont Hospital for Children in Wilmington Delaware has accepted the position as President of the SSSF. Suken joined the Harms Study Group in 2005 and has published works in over 200 peer-reviewed journal articles. He is a current member of the Board of Directors of the Scoliosis Research Society and is in the presidential line. He is also an active member of the Pediatric Orthopedic Society of North America with positions on the Treasurer’s Committee, One-Day Course Committee, and Industry Relations Committee. He resides in Wilmington, Delaware, and joined the Setting Scoliosis Straight Foundation board in 2011.
Amer Samdani, MD, Chief of Orthopedics at Shriners Hospital for Children in Philadelphia, will fulfill the role of Vice President of Education. Amer has been a surgeon member of the Harms Study Group since 2006 and serves on the HSG Executive Committee. He joined the Setting Scoliosis Straight Foundation board in 2008. He is also a current member of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons.
Firoz Miyanji, MD, BC Children’s Hospital in Vancouver, Canada, will serve as Vice President of Research. Dr. Miyanji’s research interests include clinical outcomes research, health care policy, and innovative therapies in pediatric spinal disorders. He is an active member of many societies and has been an invited speaker and faculty at numerous national and international meetings and courses. He has been the recipient of the St. Giles Young investigator award from POSNA, the SRS Travelling Fellowship, the McGraw Lectureship from the University of British Columbia, and was previously the Research Committee Chair for POSNA and Chaired the Program Committee of the SRS. He is currently on a Board of Directors for POSNA. He joined the Setting Scoliosis Straight Foundation board in 2019.
Peter Newton, MD, Chief of Orthopedics and Surgeon in Chief at Rady Children’s Hospital in San Diego, and David Clements, MD of Cooper Bone and Joint Institute in Camden, New Jersey have stepped down from the positions of President and Vice President, respectively. Both will remain active on the Board of Directors and Executive Committee and are excited to welcome new key thought leaders to the organization.
The SSSF remains committed to raising awareness about Scoliosis to ensure patients can make informed decisions surrounding treatment. With the guidance of our new leadership team, we will continue to work toward answering important clinical questions to ultimately improve care and outcomes for Scoliosis patients.
