Rick Bransford is a renowned orthopedic spine surgeon based at Harborview Medical Center, Seattle, where he treats patients with complex spinal trauma and degenerative conditions. His research interests center on surgical techniques for acute spinal injuries and associated complications, treatment strategies for degenerative spine conditions including spinal stenosis, deformity, and disc disease, and outcomes of procedures such as spinal fusion.

He is influential in the adoption and evaluation of new surgical technologies, including robotic-assisted spine surgery, with an emphasis on improving precision, safety, and patient outcomes. Beyond clinical care and research, he has a long-standing interest in global health and education, particularly in supporting orthopedic care and physician training in resource-limited settings.

To mark his recent appointment as Chairperson of the Technical Commission Spine, we asked him about the importance of collaboration in innovation translation, the enduring value of the AO TC, and his vision for the coming years.

Rick, as a highly experienced orthopedic spine surgeon at the University of Washington, Seattle, your days are already full. What motivates you to give your time and expertise to the AO Technical Commission?

Working with the AO Technical Commission (AO TC) means that my efforts can positively impact multiple patients and surgeons globally, including less well-resourced regions, in contrast to treating individual patients in my daily clinical practice. What drives me is a desire to make meaningful changes for the betterment of humanity, rather than personal financial gain or prestige. As a youngster, I worked alongside my father who was a general surgeon in East Africa, and my passion remains to understand the needs of patients worldwide and to improve their lives.

One of the key challenges in spine innovation is translating advanced surgical techniques and technologies into safe and effective clinical practice—how can the Technical Commission contribute to this area?

20 years ago, surgical innovation was based on the development of better implants and instruments. Today, the focus has shifted to technologies such as robotics, navigation, AI, and a holistic view of the patient journey. Most surgeons have little expertise in advanced technologies, so it’s vital that we can collaborate with scientists and specialized engineers. In turn, our industry partners need our surgical expertise to advise where clinical needs still exist and where better precision is needed.

The Technical Commission operates at the interface of clinical expertise and technology development—what are the challenges and opportunities for the AO’s partnerships with industry?

The current partnership structure between AO and DPS has had its challenges, in terms of our expert group structure not fully aligning with their strategic aims. I believe the recent separation of DPS from the larger Johnson & Johnson family presents us with new opportunities to reset and re-align on a shared vision and clear goals to improve patient care and outcomes.

Recently, we have had a very successful off-ramp project with icotec. The AO backing for this project was very encouraging for me as a surgeon and presents further opportunities to ensure clinical needs are addressed across the entire breadth of spine surgery. There is huge value in leveraging industry knowledge while maintaining the AO’s independence and credibility—our efforts must always be directed towards better patient care rather than market considerations.

Rick, as the outgoing Chairperson of the AO Spine Education Commission and the incoming Chairperson of the AO TC Spine, you have unique insight into different governance areas across the AO. How can the AO TC position itself to work most effectively with other AO clinical divisions and institutes?

My overarching aim is to change perspectives and remove barriers to potential collaborations between innovation, education and evidence creation: after all, we’re just different parts of the same AO Spine family. I think we can leverage the AO Spine Knowledge Forums much more effectively, as their work to generate clinical evidence is a fundamental piece of the puzzle. For example, we could collaborate on the follow-up and outcome assessment of new spine solutions.

Alongside my new position in the AO TC, I will also have a position on the AO Spine International Board and this will help to foster a better interchange of ideas. During my time with the AO Spine Education Commission, I saw some misunderstanding about the AO TC’s relationship with industry and some resistance due to perceived bias. I aim to strengthen the TC's standing within the AO family through greater collaboration and integration into AO Spine governance.

Looking ahead a few years, what would success look like for the AO Spine Technical Commission under your leadership?

I have a number of focus areas: in terms of external partnerships, I will lead the AO Technical Commission Spine in resetting common goals with our key industry partner DPS and prepare for possible changes due to further industry restructuring. Alongside this, I’m keen to review the structure and membership of our Expert Groups, for better alignment with industry priorities and available projects. I will also advocate for a more formal and transparent process for AO Technical Commission membership selection, such as open calls, to strengthen our presence within the AO family.

Looking at internal AO partnerships, I’d like to see greater integration of the Technical Commission into the wider AO Spine family including participation in AO Spine International Board meetings and collaboration with the AO Spine Knowledge Forums and the AO Spine Education Commission.

These changes will fully equip us to deliver on our AO TC mission to improve patient care and outcomes through innovation and evidence generation.

We thank Rick for sharing his thoughts with us and we wish him all the best for his new position.