When I was first asked to be the President of the Begg Society, I must admit I was a little surprised. At that time, I had only been to one meeting, and didn’t practice Begg or even Tip-Edge. But the logic made perfect sense. It was time for the Begg Society to “re-invent” itself. To make itself more relevant and offer more appeal in the busy landscape of orthodontic groups. My goal then was to position the Begg Society, so that it was something unique, and that wouldn’t desire or attempt to compete with the ASO or the ASOFRE. The first part of the mission was to spread the word, that the Begg Society wasn’t about the Begg Lightwire technique any more. It embraces all orthodontic disciplines.
The second part of the mission was to follow on from the successful Cairns meeting with a boutique style meeting, in a desirable location, with an interesting line up of speakers, which would include some lectures that probably wouldn’t appear in a regular conventional orthodontic program. That became the formula for Broome, which I believe lived up to the dream of being as successful as Cairns, two years earlier. The third change was to move the biennial meetings into the ASO “non-congress” year. That is the reason behind the next meeting in Hamilton Island being only one year away in 2017. Meanwhile, the charitable works in Dili continued, and with a wider membership base, it is hoped that it will be possible to continue the program with more regular visits. To encourage and facilitate this, a short course in the treatment of Cleft Palate is planned in conjunction with the next Begg meeting.
Now my two year term is complete, I sincerely thank my previous Committee members, and wish the new Committee every success.
Pat Hannan
Immediate Past-President
Australasian Begg Society of Orthodontists