August 2007

The American Academy of Spine Physicians (AASP) is committed to developing multimedia resources for members to help educate patients, physicians and the public. One of the most effective and powerful tools is the slide progam. Powerpoint slide programs can be used to present to patients and the public. They can also be used to educate staff and other healthcare professionals. Slide programs can be posted on a member’s practice website and be made available 24/7.

New or renewing AASP members will receive some PowerPoint® slide sets at no cost as part of a Practice Development Kit on CD. Current members will soon be able to access these programs online.  Some slide programs/sets are only available by purchase, although they can be purchased at a discount by members through the online AASP store. Slide programs can be downloaded from the AASP website to the member's personal computer. Some of the slides can be customized for personalized presentations. The slide programs can be used to inform patients, physicians and the public about the benefits of conservative spinecare, the member's specialized approach and the role of the member in spinecare. The slide programs were designed to be used with other AASP educational resources such as brochures and fact sheets. Individual AASP slides can be placed into other PowerPoint programs with ease.

The AASP will be archiving PowerPoint® slide programs in an online slide library so that they can be accessed through the members practice website via a plugin (link). Members are encouraged to direct their patients to go online to view slide programs on their practice website. The online approach can be used to supplement patient education lectures in the member’s office setting.  Participants in these lectures should be encouraged to refer friends and family to view programs online.