Meet the new AO Trauma Councils' Members in Latin America

In recent months, new members of the country councils have been elected and their three-year terms have commenced. These new members have been elected based on the votes cast by each country’s electorate of active members, and approved by the respective AO Trauma Nomination Comittees (NomCom).

In Argentina, Guido Carabelli was elected as Chairman. He outlined his intentions for the council, and said he aims to promote Research, Education, and Network Development, and to work in a well-coordinated manner by holding regional and national meetings—both remotely and face-to-face—that strengthen the bonds within the group, not only at a national level, but also regionally and internationally. He will be joined by Gustavo Fiorentini (Education Officer), Danilo Taype (Research Officer) and Pablo Segura (Network Development Officer), who will work for the growth of AO Trauma in the country.

In Brazil, joining Luiz Henrique Penteado (Chairperson), Alexandre Pallottino (Education Officer) and Leonardo Rocha (Research Officer) will be Luiz Campinhos (Fellowship Officer) and Robinson Esteves (Network Development Officer). Campinhos stated that he wishes to establish a close relationship with the AO Reference Centers in Brazil and, especially, with Brazilian fellows. Esteves said that "after being part of AO Trauma for more than 10 years, I can say that AO has completely changed my life. During my career in AO, I have had the chance to be a faculty member and a chairperson for several terms, always with great enthusiasm and a keen desire to motivate and educate residents and surgeons".

In Chile, Cristian Ortiz was elected to the position of Chairperson. He stressed his intention to promote education at both the national and international levels, encourage the participation of younger members in order to foster innovative activities with new sources of funding and, thus, generate a growing interest in joining the group. In addition, he wishes to build on the experience of previous leaders, and effectively blend it with that of the ones who will carry on the mission. By his side will be Javier Román (Education), Jorge Filippi (Network Development) and Rodolfo López (N&D), who are eager to continue working for the interests of AO Trauma in Chile.

In Colombia, Amparo Gómez expressed that, as Chairperson, her aim is to "give visibility to AO Trauma's labor and principles in medium and small size cities in Colombia, and to find new members, faculty and leaders for our community while holding and supporting educational activities of the highest quality". Alongside her will be Alejandro Sandoval (Education Officer), Andrés Pinzón (Network Development Officer) and Carlos Valderrama (Research Officer).

Finally, David Escalante was elected as Chairperson in Ecuador. He explained that his work "will follow three axes: education—by holding quarterly activities in major hospitals in the country—, consolidation of AO Trauma Ecuador—by having active faculty members and bringing back former affiliates—, and research—by offering training on the topic in a joint effort with SEOT”. Taking on the challenge with Escalante in his effort to strengthen AO Trauma in Ecuador are Luis Calderón (Education Officer), Christian Ochoa (Network Development Officer) and Karlo Mogrovejo (Research Officer).

AO Trauma Latin America Chairperson Rodrigo Pesántez warmly welcomes the newly elected chairpersons and representatives.