Historian’s Corner: Mary Lloyd Ireland, MD
Every organization has a story, and ours is closely tied to the story of women in orthopaedic sports medicine. The Historian’s Corner is dedicated to preserving and sharing that history: the people, meetings and milestones that have shaped The Forum since 1999.
Here, we celebrate where we began, honor the members who built our Society, and record the moments that continue to define The Forum for future generations of women orthopaedic sports medicine surgeons.
Meet Our Historian: Dr. Mary Lloyd Ireland
Dr. Mary Lloyd Ireland has been part of The Forum’s story from the very beginning. She was one of the 20 women orthopaedic surgeons who attended the inaugural meeting in San Diego that grew into The Forum, and she has remained a dedicated advocate for women in orthopaedic sports medicine ever since. She has also helped document our history as a co-author of an account of The Forum’s founding and its partnership with the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine (AOSSM).
Dr. Ireland is an Orthopaedic Surgeon and Full Clinical Professor in the University of Kentucky’s Department of Orthopaedic Surgery and Sports Medicine. She earned her medical degree from the University of Tennessee Center for the Health Sciences in Memphis and completed her orthopaedic residency at the University of California, Irvine, followed by two sports medicine fellowships at Boston Children’s Hospital, Harvard University, and the Hughston Orthopaedic Clinic in Columbus, Georgia.
She served as team physician for Eastern Kentucky University for 18 years and for the University of Kentucky for 11 years, and as Medical Coordinator and Head Physician for the Bluegrass State Games for 11 years. She was Head Physician at the 1990 Olympic Sports Festival in Minneapolis and a medical staff member at the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona.
Much of Dr. Ireland’s academic work has focused on gender differences in sports injuries, particularly of the knee and shoulder, and on their treatment and prevention. She is co-editor of The Female Athlete. In 2018, she founded the Active Women’s Health Initiative at the University of Kentucky, now known as the Active Girls and Healthy Women Initiative, to promote health, physical activity and wellness for girls and women across the lifespan. In 2019, she led an AOSSM symposium on protecting athletes from sexual abuse.
In recognition of her contributions to sports medicine, Dr. Ireland was inducted into the AOSSM Hall of Fame in 2023 and received the AOSSM Thomas A. Brady Community Service Award in 2026.
Our History
How The Forum Began
The Forum was founded in 1999, when relatively few women practiced orthopaedic sports medicine. Pam Whitehead, with the support of DonJoy Orthopedics, recognized that women orthopaedic sports surgeons were scattered across the country and were rarely invited to speak at meetings or included in professional networks. She invited a group of fellowship-trained, female orthopaedic surgeons to an inaugural meeting in San Diego.
Twenty surgeons attended that first meeting, including three who would later be inducted into the AOSSM Hall of Fame: Dr. Elizabeth Arendt, Dr. Mary Lloyd Ireland and Dr. Sandy Kirkley. The founding members chose the name “Forum” to reflect their emphasis on collegial discussion of complex issues, and together they set a goal of mutual support for the betterment of women in orthopaedic sports medicine.
Milestones
- 1999: The Forum is founded, growing out of an inaugural meeting of 20 women orthopaedic surgeons in San Diego.
- Our early years: Dr. Juliet DeCampos becomes The Forum’s first elected president and bylaws are adopted. Membership is established for board-certified, fellowship-trained orthopaedic surgeons with a focus on sports medicine.
- Honoring Dr. Sandy Kirkley: After the tragic loss of Dr. Kirkley in a plane crash shortly after the first meeting, The Forum names its annual Presidential Guest Speakership in her honor.
- 10th anniversary: Then-president Dr. Constance Chu helps establish The Forum’s nonprofit status.
- 2017: The Forum mourns the passing of its founder, Pam Whitehead. In her honor, the Forum Board creates the Pam Whitehead Forum Fund to help endow the organization for future generations.
- Advocacy for athlete safety: Forum members Drs. Michelle Wolcott, Marlene DeMaio, Tamara Scerpella and Karen Sutton author the position statement “Sexual Abuse/Harassment: Creating a Safe Environment for Competitive Athletes,” which is endorsed by the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) and AOSSM.
- 2021: The Forum is featured for the first time in its own breakout session at the combined AOSSM and Arthroscopy Association of North America (AANA) Annual Meeting.
- 2022: The Forum co-chairs a surgical skills course with AOSSM.
- 2024: About 100 members gather in San Diego to celebrate The Forum’s 25th anniversary.
The Forum Today
Today, The Forum has grown to more than 90 members. Our Annual Meeting is traditionally held over Martin Luther King, Jr. weekend and combines scientific and social programs, highlighted by the Sandy Kirkley Memorial Lecture. Our partnership with AOSSM continues to grow through concurrent sessions, a Forum networking reception at the AOSSM Annual Meeting and collaborative initiatives in research and education.
Over the years, Forum members have become the first, or among the first, women to serve as presidents of orthopaedic societies, department chairs, full professors and fellowship directors, with many crediting the support of their Forum colleagues for their success.
Share Your Forum Story
The Historian’s Corner grows with the memories of our members. If you have photos, meeting memorabilia or stories from The Forum’s history, we invite you to share them so they can be preserved and celebrated for generations to come.