The International Association for Dance Medicine & Science (IADMS) was formed in 1990 with the goal summarized in its

mission statement A mission statement is a short statement of why an organization exists, what its overall goal is, the goal of its operations: what kind of product or service it provides, its primary customers or market, and its geographical region of operation ...

: IADMS is an inclusive organization for professionals who care for those who

dance Dance is a performing art form consisting of sequences of movement, either improvised or purposefully selected. This movement has aesthetic and often symbolic value. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoir ...

by evolving best practices in dance science, education, research, and medical care to support optimal health, well-being, training, and performance. As at 2020, the association had a membership of over 1,500 from over 52 countries. Since its inception, the association has held an annual meeting (scientific conference) at venues around the world. These conferences, currently four days in length, are multidisciplinary, with lectures,

symposia ''Symposia'' is a genus of South American araneomorph spiders in the family Cybaeidae, and was first described by Eugène Simon in 1898. Species it contains six species in Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic o ...

, and forums on dance medicine,

dance science Dance science is the scientific study of dance and dancers, as well as the practical application of scientific principles to dance. Its aims are the enhancement of performance, the reduction of injury, and the improvement of well-being and health. ...

, and dance education, as well as movement sessions. The conferences are attended by

physician A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...

s, physical therapists, allied

health professional A health professional, healthcare professional, or healthcare worker (sometimes abbreviated HCW) is a provider of health care treatment and advice based on formal training and experience. The field includes those who work as a nurse, physician (suc ...

s, alternative healthcare practitioners,

psychologist A psychologist is a professional who practices psychology and studies mental states, perceptual, cognitive, emotional, and social processes and behavior. Their work often involves the experimentation, observation, and interpretation of how indi ...

s, arts administrators,

artistic director An artistic director is the executive of an arts organization, particularly in a theatre or dance company, who handles the organization's artistic direction. They are generally a producer and director, but not in the sense of a mogul, since the ...

choreographer Choreography is the art or practice of designing sequences of movements of physical bodies (or their depictions) in which motion or form or both are specified. ''Choreography'' may also refer to the design itself. A choreographer is one who cr ...

s, dance educators, dance scientists, movement specialists, and dancers. Continuing education credits for healthcare professionals are provided. The association publishes a quarterly

peer-reviewed scientific journal In academic publishing, a scientific journal is a periodical publication intended to further the progress of science, usually by reporting new research. Content Articles in scientific journals are mostly written by active scientists such as s ...

, ''

Journal of Dance Medicine & Science The International Association for Dance Medicine & Science (IADMS) was formed in 1990 with the goal summarized in its mission statement: IADMS is an inclusive organization for professionals who care for those who dance by evolving best practic ...

'' (by subscription, print and online) which is indexed in MEDLINE and ''The IADMS Bulletin for Teachers'' (free, online only). Resource papers on numerous topics and in several languages, written by medical, scientific, and dance professionals, are available for free download on the association's

website A website (also written as a web site) is a collection of web pages and related content that is identified by a common domain name and published on at least one web server. Examples of notable websites are Google Search, Google, Facebook, Amaz ...

Presidents

* 1991–1993 Justin Howse,

FRCS (Eng) The Royal College of Surgeons of England (RCS England) is an independent professional body and registered charity that promotes and advances standards of surgical care for patients, and regulates surgery and dentistry in England and Wales. The ...

and Allan Ryan, MD * 1993–1997 Jan Dunn, MS * 1997–1999 Robert Stephens,

PhD PHD or PhD may refer to: * Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), an academic qualification Entertainment * '' PhD: Phantasy Degree'', a Korean comic series * ''Piled Higher and Deeper'', a web comic * Ph.D. (band), a 1980s British group ** Ph.D. (Ph.D. albu ...

* 1999–2001 Marika Molnar, PT * 2001–2003 David S. Weiss, MD, FAAOS * 2003–2005 Rachel Rist, MA * 2005–2007 Virginia Wilmerding,

* 2007–2009 Boni Rietveld, MD * 2009–2011 Tom Welsh,

* 2011–2013 Emma Redding,

* 2013–2015

Janet Karin Janet Karin OAM was born in Perth, Australia in 1938. She became one of Australia's leading dancers in 1956, and has danced with the ''Victorian Ballet Guild'', ''Borovansky Ballet'', and was a founding member of The Australian Ballet. She is a N ...

* 2015–2017 Matthew Wyon,

* 2017–2019 Peter Lavine, MD * 2019–2021 Peter Lewton-Brain, DO, MA * 2021-2023 Nancy Kadel, MD * 2023-2025 Kathleen Davenport, MD

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:International Association for Dance Medicine and Science Dance organizations International medical and health organizations Dance and health