Vice President's Corner
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Vice President Healthy Athletes Dr. Wagner. Photo by Ryan Eades. |
Dear Friends and Colleagues:
As the year draws to a close, I, too, will be closing a significant chapter in my life. I will be stepping away from my current position as Vice President of Health Services at Special Olympics and entering, what I will call, a semi-retirement. I will continue to care about and try to serve this organization and its mission for many years to come; I am pledging to do this for as long as I can be useful. I am not going into hibernation or seclusion, but I will diversify my activities with a little more emphasis on family and a slower pace.
When I came to Special Olympics nearly seven years ago, I never dreamed that I would have been part of such a dramatic and inspiring experience at Special Olympics and as part of Healthy Athletes. I want to express my deepest gratitude for the opportunities I have had during my tenure. I have had the privilege working with a great movement and dedicated staff and colleagues, generous and committed volunteers, in addition to sharing the challenges and victories of our inspirational athletes.
My enduring memories will be the hundreds of professional colleagues that I have had the honor to encounter over the years. I will always remember the lives that have been changed because “someone cared.” I will always see the face of the athlete at the starting line and at the finish line—and that face that accepted the challenge, overcame it and was victorious. It was not because he or she won a medal, but because the goal was achieved. I will remember the intense looks of compassion, and respect in the eyes of our health-care volunteers as they encountered athletes in screening venues around the world. It didn't matter if it was the language barrier or a cultural difference; the common purpose and approach was always to help.
I have been truly blessed with family, friends and colleagues. I want to continue all of these relationships and share the joy of our mission of improved health and health care for our courageous athletes. Some time last year I put some thoughts down as to my view of what the future holds for Healthy Athletes. We will be facing challenges as we move forward, but they are manageable with our collective wisdom, enduring dedication and great talent and skill.
Some of these issues might include the following:
- Growth, sustainability and quality-providing more athletes access to Healthy Athletes and local and area Games, alternative funding and in-kind to provide expansion, and to assure that standards of care are always maintained;
- Challenges to our model-there are demographic, geographic and cultural concerns that may arise that require ingenuity and innovation in the delivery of service with out compromising quality;
- “So What” factor-perhaps the most challenging issue. We have to seek ways to assure the follow up care can be provided. We do not have the direct care responsibility, but do have some role in finding health care providers and supporting the athlete's efforts to get needed care; and
- Effective data and information management-information has the power to effect change. We can use our data to inform, advocate and influence policy. We need to have it accessible and available to all who will be charged to inform, advocate and influence.
I will close with my deep and abiding belief in the Special Olympics mission. Healthy Athletes is an integral part of that mission and will continue to serve our athletes' health and well-being.
Thanks for the memories and the new ones to come.
Mark
Mark L. Wagner D.M.D.
Vice President, Health Programs
Return to Healthy Athletes Update, Winter 2007
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