Fall 2001 Editorial:

States & Provinces of the PCSO - Component Recognition

Dr. Gerald Nelson, Editor

The PCSO is comprised of 11 states and provinces: Alberta, Alaska, Arizona, British Columbia, California, Hawaii, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Saskatchewan, and Washington.

Each has its own orthodontic society, although the activity of each varies considerably. This year these component societies have begun an important era as a formal, recognized part of the American Association of Orthodontists.

You may be surprised that this has not been the case in the past. For years, many AAO members have been old friends of Component organizations so it may not have occurred to them that their organization was not formally part of the AAO.

Formal membership has, nonetheless, been an important issue and the PCSO delegation to the AAO House has waged a five-year battle for this recognition, which was finally achieved this past May at the Toronto AAO meeting.

It was an interesting process. In 1993, under then President Dr. Terry McDonald (Salem, OR), PCSO first proposed Component recognition in the House. We expected an easy approval, but discovered that at least one constituent society was vehemently opposed—they feared components would have access to undue influence at the AAO House of Delegates.

Canadian AAO members were also cautious, as many of their members are not required to belong to their respective component societies (e.g., PCSO). Our original resolution would have made formation of the Component mandatory.

Over the next years, our delegates and officers incrementally changed the resolution and re-introduced it until all objections had been discovered and removed.

The vote this year was overwhelming in favor of passage. It was a good moment for PCSO, and demonstrated the value of planning, persistence, good communications—and it ended a fair amount of frustration.

What difference does it make that the Components are now an official part of the AAO bylaws? Primarily, the change unplugs the flow of communication. For example, prior to the change, an informational request from the California Assn. of Orthodontists (CAO) to an AAO trustee would not have had any compelling relevance, since the CAO was not a recognized part of the AAO. (Our trustee was always most cooperative, however. Past-trustee Donald Poulton was one of the founders of CAO, and an early president).

Also, if the AAO asked the CAO to submit membership information, it would not be forthcoming without some CAO Board members debating the propriety of the request.

Now we can expect improved cooperation between the AAO and its component societies. We don't know where this change in AAO structure will take us. I do know that our state and provincial societies can look forward to a better listening post in St. Louis, and an era of increasing service and benefit from the AAO.

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