EDITORIAL

The SECOM "White Paper" El "Libro Blanco" de la SECOM   Rafael Martín-Granizo López Director

"White Papers" are certainly fashionable now. Just recently, a Spanish presidential candidate held up a white paper before television cameras in one of the most famous and media-intensive debates in the latest general elections. Interestingly, the "white paper" was blank, I don’t know whether it was because the candidate didn’t know what to fill it with or because he wanted to fill it with his constituents.

Despite this recent fashion, the Spanish Society of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery (SECOM, Spanish initials) has worked since 2002 on a white paper targeting our specialty. The book has yet to see the light of day, not for lack of enthusiasm and interest, but because it is so expensive for our Society. Fortunately, recent changes in SECOM management and operation have allowed the Executive Board, led by its President, Santiago Llorente, to get this important project going.

What this project means to our specialty cannot be underestimated. The SECOM white paper will deal with all the specialty of oral and maxillofacial surgery. We are fortunate that the majority of the people with degrees in oral and maxillofacial surgery belong to the SECOM. This is not the case of other medical specialties or odontology. We are not exaggerating when we say that it is one of the most important projects that our Society has embarked upon in our 30-year history.

"White papers" receive this name because they are blank pages open to receiving "anything we want." The Diccionario de la Lengua Española (Dictionary of the Spanish Language) defines a white paper as "a paper containing a complete report or a series of proposals on the state of a certain question or matter." This means that they are important instruments that reflect the situation of a body and establish recommendations for action. For that reason, our aim is to offer a current vision of the state of our specialty and to prepare a strategic plan for the specialty in the future. We will develop areas as relevant as the role of the specialty in the public and private health sectors, teaching and training, and scientific research and publications, without overlooking international relations and the legal framework in which the profession operates. The Executive Board has approved a very well represented and capable Steering Committee to develop different parts of the strategy. I will be coordinating this committee. We will be advised and assisted by a leading company that is experienced in preparing this work. This company will use a methodology based mainly on surveys and statistics, in which they will analyze not only quantitative but qualitative variables and satisfaction measures.

Let us not forget, however, that the SECOM White Book will be our book, prepared by all of us as specialists and members of SECOM. This is why we are counting on all of you for the essential collaboration. Have no doubt that it will be our most important weapon in our efforts to ensure the scientific and occupational future of our specialty. I would like to thank all of you in advance for your colaboration.