WARSAW, Ind., Feb 21, 2005 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX/ -- Zimmer Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: ZMH; SWX: ZMH), a worldwide leader in the orthopaedics industry, announced that it has funded the expansion of a cross-cultural training program, created by the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS), that will be made available to its members and the healthcare community at the organization's 72nd Annual Meeting, which begins this week in Washington, D.C.
"Based on the success of our collaboration with the AAOS in 2004 with a cultural competency pilot program, we are pleased to support expansion of the program in 2005," said Ray Elliott, Zimmer Chairman, President and CEO. "The Cultural Competency Challenge will be featured by the AAOS and made available on CD-ROM for its members as self-paced training throughout the year. The project supports the goals of the Zimmer Minority Initiatives Program, which provides grants and coordination in the areas of minority representation in medicine and cultural competence among health care professionals."
"The Cultural Competency Challenge is a self-assessment and learning tool, showcasing 18 diverse patient cases, designed to help surgeons become more aware of cultural differences among their patients, including communication and clinical considerations," said Ramon Jimenez, MD, Chair of the AAOS Diversity Committee spearheading this project. The goal of the AAOS program is to minimize any disparities in treatment across different patient populations that might arise from cultural misunderstandings. Orthopaedic surgeons can earn Continuing Medical Education credits for successfully completing the program. At the annual meeting, the AAOS will be featuring the program in their "AAOS Diversity in Orthopaedics" booth and cultural competency will be the subject of a surgeon-led symposium. Following the annual meeting, the AAOS will provide the Cultural Competency CD-ROM to all U.S. orthopaedic residency programs for use in their training efforts. The CD will also be available via the AAOS website at http://www.aaos.org .
Launched in 2004, the Zimmer Minority Initiatives Program funds a variety of efforts through the AAOS, the J. Robert Gladden Society, the Ruth Jackson Society and other organizations. The company recently announced a $35,000 grant to National Medical Fellowships to support need-based scholarships to underrepresented minority medical school students.
About Zimmer
Founded in 1927 and headquartered in Warsaw, Indiana, Zimmer is the worldwide #1 pure-play orthopaedic leader in designing, developing, manufacturing and marketing reconstructive and spinal implants, trauma and related orthopaedic surgical products. In October 2003, the Company finalized its acquisition of Centerpulse AG, a Switzerland-based orthopaedics company and the leader in the European reconstructive market. Zimmer has operations in more than 24 countries around the world and sells products in more than 100 countries. Zimmer's 2004 sales were approximately $3 billion. The Company is supported by the efforts of more than 6,500 employees worldwide.
About AAOS
With 28,000 members, the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (http://www.aaos.org) or (http://www.orthoinfo.org ) is a not-for-profit organization that provides education programs for orthopaedic surgeons, allied health professionals, and the public. An advocate for improved patient care, the Academy is participating in the Bone and Joint Decade (http://www.usbjd.org ), the global initiative in the years 2002-2011 to raise awareness of musculoskeletal health, stimulate research, and improve people's quality of life. President Bush has declared the years 2002-2011 National Bone and Joint Decade in support of these objectives. The Academy's Annual Meeting is being held February 23-27, 2005, at the Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C.
Visit Zimmer on the worldwide web at http://www.zimmer.com
Zimmer Safe Harbor Statement
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 based on current expectations, estimates, forecasts and projections about the orthopaedics industry, management's beliefs and assumptions made by management. Forward-looking statements may be identified by the use of forward-looking terms such as "may," "will," "expects," "believes," "anticipates," "plans," "estimates," "projects," "targets," "forecasts," and "seeks" or the negative of such terms or other variations on such terms or comparable terminology. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions that could cause actual outcomes and results to differ materially. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, our ability to successfully integrate Centerpulse AG and Implex Corp., the outcome of the pending informal SEC investigation of Centerpulse accounting, price and product competition, rapid technological development, demographic changes, dependence on new product development, the mix of our products and services, supply and prices of raw materials and products, customer demand for our products and services, control of costs and expenses, our ability to form and implement alliances, international growth, governmental laws and regulations affecting our U.S. and international businesses, including tax obligations and risks, product liability and intellectual property litigation losses, reimbursement levels from third-party payors, general industry and market conditions and growth rates and general domestic and international economic conditions including interest rate and currency exchange rate fluctuations. For a further list and description of such risks and uncertainties, see the disclosure materials filed by Zimmer with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Zimmer disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Readers of this document are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, since, while we believe the assumptions on which the forward-looking statements are based are reasonable, there can be no assurance that these forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate. This cautionary statement is applicable to all forward-looking statements contained in this document.
SOURCE Zimmer Holdings, Inc.
Media: Brad Bishop, +1-574-372-4291, [email protected] , Investors: Marc
Ostermann, +1-574-371-8515, [email protected] , or Sam Leno, +1-574-372-4790
[email protected] , all of Zimmer Holdings, Inc.
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