The Patellofemoral Foundation Board of Directors is pleased to announce that a generous donation of $10,000 has been received from Joan Merchant in the name of her late husband and Patellofemoral pioneer, Alan Merchant, MD. Dr. Merchant was a great supporter of the Foundation and the first recipient of the organization’s Lifetime Achievement Award in March of 2014.
Mrs. Merchant shared that “Al was always focused on the patellofemoral joint and dedicated his life and work to understanding it better. His goal was to improve the lives of all patients that experienced discomfort and he enjoyed working with anyone that shared his interest. It is an honor for my family and me to support the goals of the Patellofemoral Foundation.”
Dr. John Fulkerson, President of the PFF said, ”Alan Merchant was not only a pioneer, but also a true friend and amazing orthopaedic surgeon with a legacy of accomplishments in research and product design. Even in his retirement, Alan worked on designs to make surgical procedures more effective and reproducible as demonstrated with his most recent work with Kinamed on the development of his MD3T Tibial Tubercle Transfer system. Early in his career, Al developed the radiographic view that came to be known as the ‘Merchant view’ to better understand the relationship of the patella and its position within the trochlea to assist surgeons with a more accurate diagnosis and subsequent surgical options. With typical Al Merchant humility, he always preferred to have his view referred to as the ‘Axial View’!
“Dr. Merchant was a true friend and he will always be remembered as a legend in our field. Most importantly, he was a wonderful example to us all as he was a devoted husband to Joan and father to Bob, Janet, and Tom, who is an accomplished orthopaedic surgeon as well. On behalf of the Patellofemoral Foundation Board, I would like to express our gratitude for the gift to help pursue our goals.”
The Patellofemoral Foundation is a non-profit 501(c)(3) established in 2003. Additional information including access to the Masters Online Education Modules can be found at www.patellofemoral.org.