The vision of the Future in Hand Campaign is to substantially increase funding of the highest quality hand surgery research.
Since 1986, AFSH has awarded nearly $900,000 to fund more than 45 basic science grants. The research conducted through these grants has generated many presentations at ASSH annual meetings and approximately 35 peer-reviewed papers, many published in the Journal of Hand Surgery. A number of grants have collected pilot data that has led to subsequent grant funding from the NIH, the Veterans’ Administration, and other private foundations.
Over the past ten years, The AFSH has awarded $224,712 in support of 21 clinical grants. Grants in support of clinical studies have had mixed results. Though many have been presented and published in various venues, few have had the power to change clinical practice or serve as the pilot data for more substantial foundation or federal funding.
"Most surgeons think clinical research is easy, basic research is more difficult. But properly conducted, clinical research is increasingly challenging. We need people doing first rate clinical research since it has a direct impact on our practices.”
Terry R. Light, MD, Chair, Future in Hand Campaign
We must recognize that the true costs of clinical projects far exceed the dollars that have been allotted by the AFSH. In the past many investigators used personal funds or diverted personnel to manage projects without compensation. The current funding shortfalls faced by clinical investigators have caused many to scale back or abandon worthwhile projects.
The hand surgery community applauds clinician investigators for their dedication and resourcefulness.
The Future in Hand Campaign is the Foundation's commitment to increasing the amount of its grant funding to insure that investigators have sufficient resources to produce high quality studies. The increased funding must be coupled with careful expert grant review. A structured process must be instituted to monitor the progress of our investment in each grant. In this way, the ASSH and AFSH will most effectively advocate for practicing hand surgeons.