The Meyer Award

Dear Colleagues:

E.A. Codman was not only a champion of the "End-Result" concept, the precursor of what we now call value-based healthcare, but also an innovator. He believed that an individual with the courage to challenge the status quo and pioneer new methods of treatment was essential to improving the value of care we offer our patients. I will speak about such individuals in my Codman Lecture in Vancouver in a few weeks. For now, I'd like to introduce you to one such individual, whose life was, unfortunately, inversely proportional to the great impact of his curiosity and innovations.

The Meyer Award is unique in orthopedics: it recognizes individuals who, like Dominik, have endeavored—and succeeded—in changing the paradigm of care for patients with musculoskeletal problems. Given every three years, it honors those who, over a lifetime of research and clinical service, have achieved meaningful improvements in care for patients with difficult orthopedic problems. It might even be considered "the Nobel of Orthopedics." There is no doubt that E.A. Codman would enthusiastically approve of this recognition for the men and women who have been, and will be, selected for this honor.

The first recipient of the Meyer Award was Reinhold Ganz, honored for his work on hip preservation surgery—aptly subtitled "Breaking the Rules." Working without grant funding or a laboratory, he transformed the lives of countless patients by identifying the concept of femoroacetabular impingement (FAI), or hip impingement, which in turn led to further innovations in arthroscopic treatment.

I invite you all to consider nominating an individual you believe is deserving of the Meyer Award. The application period ends October 31, 2026. For more information, please visit https://meyeraward.org.

The Meyer Award is selected by an independent jury constituted by the boards of five international professional societies and the sponsoring foundation. The award was inspired by Prof. Christian Gerber's commitment to honoring the memory of Dominik Meyer. I was fortunate to serve as one of the international jurors in selecting the first two Meyer Award recipients.

Best regards,

Jon “J.P.” Warner, MD

Founder, The Codman Shoulder Society