About The Boneyard Project
The Boneyard Project accomplishes something never done before. It archives and informs interested readers about the lives of the women who did and currently do orthopaedic surgery. The historical portion discusses the pioneering women in the field based on the what has been written about them.
To enhance this information, video TRIBUTE CIRCLES have been conducted. Here, orthopaedic friends, colleagues and mentees of these same women offer personal information beyond the accomplishments and accolades of the subjects. This offers the viewers insight into the human side of these exemplary women.
Present day female orthopaedic surgeons tell true stories about their professional experiences via interviews with the editor which are then placed in written form and listed under the ACCOUNTS section. These stories are anonymous and contain no names, geographic locations, practice names or training programs. They range from uplifting and inspiring to deeply troubling.
The storytellers represent surgeons of diverse age groups, ethnicities, races, sexual orientations, subspecialty interests and geographic locations. To date, surgeons on SIX continents have contributed accounts!
Together, these stories provide an oral history of women in orthopaedics and a documentation of orthopaedic culture over time. Each account is categorized according to decade of occurrence on the DECADES page. The accounts also provide validation that some experiences are not unique to an individual and demonstrate how resilience, grit, and making difficult decisions can influence a career.
The newly added LEGACIES section demonstrates how parents of both genders have inspired their children to join the profession. The families are interviewed together in a live video format. The product is at times surprising and also enlightening.
Orthopaedic women are able to honor their mentors and sponsors by submitting a photograph for placement on the MENTORS page. This serves to memorialize the mentor’s efforts to promote the professional development of their mentee’s career and also allows the mentee to archive their gratitude.
The Boneyard Project was created and is edited by Debra A. Zillmer, MD, a retired sports medicine trained orthopaedic surgeon. She is an Emeritus Member of the AAOS, former president of the Ruth Jackson Orthopaedic Society, a past member of the American Orthopaedic Association and is currently a columnist for Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research.
