AAWC Frequently Asked Questions

What is the mission of AAWC and who can join?
Does AAWC offer certification?
How many members does AAWC have?
Why should I choose AAWC?
What do my membership dues help AAWC to accomplish?
How does AAWC meet its mission?
Are my dues tax deductible?
How long does it take to receive membership benefits?
Does membership run from January -December?
How does the scholarship program work?
When will the members-only section of this site be complete?
Can I transfer my 20% symposium discount to another member?
What is the link between AAWC and HMP Communications?
Who actually owns the official journals and SAWC conference?
Does AAWC have a membership recruitment program?

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1. What is the mission of the AAWC, and who can join?

AAWC’s mission is to build a collaborative community to facilitate optimal care for the millions who suffer with wounds. Our organization encourages everyone involved in the care and healing of wounds, including patients themselves, to join us in our mission.

AAWC’s primary focus is on education, and the education you receive through various Association Benefits may help prepare you for certification. However, AAWC does not offer certification. In fact, it would be a conflict of interest to offer both certification and the education to become certified within the same organization. AAWC does not endorse any particular certifying body, but we are happy to supply you with information about your options. Various certification programs can be found at our one-stop-shop, the “Advancing the Practice” Campaign website. Click here for certification options.
          
3.  How many members does AAWC have, and who are they?

AAWC has almost 1700 members as of June 2006, and that number is growing every year. Our members are clinicians members from all disciplines, including nurses, physicians, physical therapists, podiatrists, nutritionists, and others. We have student members, who represent a wide variety of fields. Many members hold industry memberships, representing many leading corporations in the field of wound care. We also have retired professionals as members, as well as patients and their lay-caregivers. Members of AAWC are primarily from the United States, but we are privileged to have an increasing amount of international members. We strongly encourage anyone involved in wound care to join our community. AAWC is a great resource to everyone involved in wound care.

You’ll feel welcomed here, and you will experience a broader membership and educational experience with AAWC than with any other wound care association. That means that you will have the ability to learn more, network more, and gain greater perspective and knowledge about the best practices in wound care. We believe in the multidisciplinary approach to care, one that includes the entire healthcare team, including patients and their lay-caregivers. This means everyone working together toward common goals and objectives based on the latest advances and knowledge in wound care technology and practice, while keeping compassion for the human experience at the forefront of our minds.  

Of course, your membership is valuable to us because we all learn best from one another’s first hand, personal experiences and varied depths of knowledge. We value our members and exist to serve them, and they help us chart the course of AAWC’s future. AAWC does not exclude anyone based on discipline, credentialing status, practice setting, location or type of wound. This provides increased abilities for mentorship and networking – learning and sharing.

We offer various benefits to our members that are very valuable and theirs alone, but also we are able to do so much for the broader wound care community through careful planning and application of our finances. In fact, our main source of revenue comes from modest membership dues. While we exist to serve our members directly first, we certainly realize the great deal of benefit our members will reap in the long term by expanding our reach and doing our part to develop the wound care profession. We believe so much in community, that we have joined with outside organizations and campaigns to help advance the field of wound care and to strengthen relationships among all groups. We could not manage to do all of this without our members’ support. Membership in AAWC not only helps you with your personal and professional goals, but also helps us in our mission to build community, which in turn advances our practice. For further rationale from our members, read our members’ testimonials. 

AAWC believes in building the wound care community, and that community obviously extends to those who are not members of AAWC. We are positioned in the wound care community as inclusive and seen by others as giving and selfless. Our AAWC Task Forces focus on activities that benefit the wound care public, such as informational brochures, articles, teaching tools and evidence-based algorithms that are available to anyone, most often free of charge.

Another example of our commitment to collaboration is our membership in various outside organizations.

7. Are my Membership Dues tax-deductible?

Individual member dues are tax deductible on Schedule A of your personal tax return, but the deduction is limited to two percent of your adjusted gross income. If your employer pays the dues, the employer will be able to deduct those dues under the itemized title of “Dues and Subscriptions.” This information has been provided for your information. Please check with your tax advisor on whether this information is accurate for your personal situation.

From the day you join, it will take a maximum of 4-5 weeks to receive your welcome package. Your welcome package will include your certificate of membership, which is suitable for framing, as well as a membership card for your wallet or rolodex. Your welcome letter, included with your membership certificate, will include information on when you can expect your first AAWC quarterly newsletter, which will depend on the time of the year that you join. After the members-only area of the AAWC web site is complete, members will have access after their request for membership is processed. You will receive details about how to log in to this special area with your welcome letter. Within 6-8 weeks, your free journals, Ostomy/Wound Management and WOUNDS, will begin to arrive every month. All Members can immediately begin using other benefits, such as the Scholarship Program. Membership discounts are also immediately available, including discounts on our Educational Image Series, Chronic Wound Care 3rd Edition, and to the Annual Symposium on Advanced Wound Care (SAWC).

Your membership begins the 1st of the month closest to the day you join, and you are eligible for AAWC benefits for a full year from that date. For example, if you join on July 23rd, your membership will be processed as August 1 through August 1 of the next year. If you join on July 5th, your membership will be processed as July 1st through July 1st of the next year.

The AAWC Scholarship Program is open to members only. Anyone who is a member in good standing can apply for an award in the areas research, education and/or travel and exchange programs. AAWC has given tens of thousands of dollars back to members over the years, and we increase the amount we give back to members as we can afford to do so. For more information on our Annual Scholarship Program, click here.

11.  When will the members-only area of this web site be ready, how do I get in, and what will be in there?

We are currently working on this area of our new web site and hope to launch it by no later than the fall of 2006. You will have access to a number of membership benefits in the member only area, including newsletters, directories, scholarship program, mentoring program, AAWC Member Bulletin Board and more! If you are an existing member, you will receive an announcement via email and/or through the mail when the members-only area is open. If you are joining for the first time, access information will be provided in your welcome letter that you receive within 4-5 weeks of joining.

You may transfer your discount to another member of your facility if you cannot attend the Symposium. Please contact the Business Office at 866-AAWC-999, and our Membership Liaison will help you.
 

AAWC and HMP Communications feel fortunate and enthusiastic about our continued partnership, established in 1995. Through an Association Management Contract, HMP provides administrative support to the organization by providing an Association Liaison to run the day to day operations of AAWC and manage routine projects. However, HMP has no control over the direction of the organization or its decisions. Outside of a management fee, HMP receives no portion of AAWC’s revenues, which are held in completely separate bank accounts in a different bank.

AAWC is governed by its Bylaws and decisions are made by its Board of Directors, who are Association Leaders elected by the Membership of AAWC. Additionally, AAWC has a full time Executive Director that provides leadership, association management expertise and oversight of the Management Firm to ensure operations are running smoothly.  

The journals Ostomy/Wound Management and WOUNDS are owned and published by HMP Communications. AAWC has adopted these premier wound care journals as the two official organization journals. The journals are peer-reviewed and provide exceptional educational wound care information to the wound care community.

The Symposium on Advanced Wound Care (SAWC) is also owned by HMP Communications. AAWC receives no revenue from this conference, but through partnership with HMP, AAWC Members receive a 20% discount. AAWC has adopted this annual conference as its “Annual Meeting Site” and holds its Annual Board of Directors Meeting, Membership Meeting and Forum Sessions there. AAWC endorses this meeting as its official conference, because it is simply the best and largest multidisciplinary wound care meeting in the United States. Many meeting attendees would agree, if he/she could only attend one wound care meeting per year, it would be SAWC – not only for its educational value, but also for its atmosphere.

Yes! We encourage members to help us expand our community. Please be sure that the member you recruit places your name on his/her application. If he/she joins through our secure website, there is a spot for listing the recruiter’s name on the online form. For each member you recruit, you will be entered into a drawing for a free membership renewal for both you and your recruit or a free Symposium on Advanced Wound Care (SAWC) registration for you (or as a gift to someone else). Winners are selected on or around January 3rd of every year.

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