Metro Philadelphia Chapter holds mock oral exam
On September 27, 2014, the Metropolitan Philadelphia Chapter of the American College of Surgeons (ACS) hosted its sixth annual mock oral board examination at the Annenberg Center for Medical Education, Lankenau Medical Center, Wynnewood, PA. This year’s event was the most widely attended to date. The 58 attendees included Fellows, residents, and recent graduates of eight general surgery residency programs and two fellowship programs in the Philadelphia area. This event was made possible through the voluntary participation of more than 60 faculty surgeons who donated their weekend time to assist younger surgeons preparing for the certifying examination. A seventh annual mock oral board will take place in fall 2015.
Dr. Pellegrini special guest at Congress of the JSS and Japan Chapter meeting
Carlos A. Pellegrini, MD, FACS, FRCSI(Hon), then-President of the ACS, attended the Annual Congress of the Japan Surgical Society (JSS) last year in Kyoto. As a special guest speaker, Dr. Pellegrini delivered a lecture, Ensuring Quality in Surgical Practice. He also spoke at the Japan Chapter’s annual business meeting, held in conjunction with the Congress of the JSS; the topic of the talk was Education and Training of Surgeons in a Modern Society.
Massachusetts Chapter meeting offers a range of events
The Massachusetts Chapter of the ACS (MCACS) held its 61st Annual Meeting December 6, 2014, at the Albert Sherman Conference Center, University of Massachusetts Memorial Medical Center, Worcester. A total of 117 health care professionals, including 56 surgery residents, attended the meeting, which opened with a breakfast symposium featuring two debates hosted by the Society for Surgery of the Alimentary Tract. The day’s activities included a poster session and a Resident Research Paper Competition moderated by Jacqueline J. Wu, MD, FACS, a general surgeon at Berkshire Medical Center, Pittsfield, MA, and assistant professor of surgery, University of Massachusetts; and Heena P. Santry, MD, FACS, a general surgeon and assistant professor of surgery, University of Massachusetts.
The chapter meeting featured the fourth annual Resident Top Gun Competition, in which surgical residents from each of the state’s 10 general surgery training programs were invited to showcase their laparoscopic skills. The winning team was from Lahey Clinic, Burlington, MA, and included Andrew Gagnon, MD; Victor Kim, MD; and Kristian Stensland, MD. A Lahey team has won the competition three out of the four years it has been held.
The winner of the second Joseph E. Murray Basic Science Oral Presentation Award was Beatrice Dionigi, MD, a general surgery resident at Boston Children’s Hospital. The award is given in memory of Joseph E. Murray, MD, FACS, who died in 2012. Dr. Murray, who hailed from Massachusetts, conducted the world’s first successful organ transplant and received the Nobel Prize in Physiology/Medicine in 1990.
Members of the MCACS looks forward to its 62nd Annual Meeting, which is scheduled to take place December 5 in Boston.
Dr. Warshaw special guest speaker at ACS South Korea Chapter meeting
Andrew L. Warshaw, MD, FACS, FRCSEd(Hon), ACS President, was the special guest speaker at the Annual Meeting of the Korean Surgical Society November 27–29, 2014, in Seoul, South Korea. Dr. Warshaw gave a presentation titled Making Appropriate Decisions for Surgical Care. While in Seoul, Dr. Warshaw attended the ACS South Korea Chapter meeting, at which he provided an update on College activities. The chapter meeting was moderated by Hyuck Sang Lee, MD, PhD, FACS, former ACS Governor for South Korea. Other presenters at the meeting included Hang-Seok Chang, MD, PhD, FACS, Chapter Secretary; Choong Bai Kim, MD, FACS, Chapter President; and Sun-Whe Kim, MD, PhD, FACS, current ACS Governor for South Korea.
New Jersey Chapter meeting attendance tops 200
The ACS New Jersey Chapter held its 63rd annual Clinical Symposium December 6, 2014, at the Renaissance Woodbridge Hotel & Conference Center, Iselin, NJ. Michael J. Spedick, MD, FACS, New Jersey Chapter President-Elect, moderated the program, which more than 200 surgeons attended. A variety of speakers from different geographic regions spoke on a spectrum of surgical specialty topics. Margaret Dunn, MD, FACS, ACS Regent, presented an overview of recent College activities.
Harry Agis, MD, FACS, a general surgeon from Morristown, NJ, presented certificates and gifts to the five 2014 Resident/Fellow manuscript winners. More than 25 papers were submitted for the competition. Ronald Chamberlain, MD, FACS, chairman and surgeon-in-chief, department of surgery, St. Barnabas Medical Center, Livingston, NJ, hosted the well-attended chapter Resident Jeopardy competition.
Ronald G. Tompkins, MD, FACS, gave the Sheen Award Recipient Lecture for 2014, titled Genomics of Injury—The Glue Grant Experience. Dr. Tompkins is the Sumner M. Redstone Professor of Surgery, Harvard Medical School, and chief of staff emeritus, Shriners Hospitals for Children, Boston, MA. He also is founding director, The Institute for Bioengineering and Biotechnology, division of surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), Boston. The institute is a new center for research and innovation that builds upon the MGH burn division’s collaborative track record and expertise in securing more than $200 million in federal, foundational, and industrial support for basic research and clinical programs.
In addition, Fred Weber, MD, JD, FACS, outgoing President of the New Jersey Chapter, offered a last presidential address on the topic of the College motto: Omnibus per artem fidemque prodesse. Dr. Weber highlighted in his speech that the designation of FACS when used after a surgeon’s name guarantees that patients will receive quality care.
Lebanon Chapter welcomes new members, celebrates 50th anniversary
The ACS Lebanon Chapter hosted a Gala Dinner December 13, 2014, to celebrate the chapter’s 50th anniversary. More than 90 attendees, including Fellows and guests, participated in the festivities. As part of the evening’s activities, 19 Fellows who were admitted to the College over the last three years were welcomed as Lebanon Chapter members and received ACS Lebanon Chapter pins. Chapter President Ghassan Nawfal, MD, FACS, gave a presentation on strategic planning for the Lebanon Chapter and announced the location of the 2015 Surgical Congress, which will take place June 25–27 in Beirut. Lebanon Chapter membership currently includes 120 Fellows, 10 Associates, and 73 Resident members.
ACS Executive Director offers keynote speech at Missouri Chapter meeting
ACS Executive Director David B. Hoyt, MD, FACS, gave the keynote address, 100 Years of Inspiring Quality at the American College of Surgeons, at the Missouri Chapter annual meeting May 30–June 1, 2014, Lake of the Ozarks, MO. Dr. Hoyt also delivered the Committee on Trauma report.
ACS Panama Chapter welcomes new Fellows at Clinical Congress
The Panama Chapter met at Neptune´s Waterfront Grill & Bar in San Francisco, CA, during the 2014 ACS Clinical Congress. The purpose of the impromptu meeting was to celebrate the initiation of 11 new Fellows from Panama. Associate Fellows and Resident Members of the chapter also attended the dinner gathering. Though predominantly a social event to promote friendship among chapter members, the group did discuss some administrative issues, offered suggestions for better communication between chapter members, and specified to those new members the rights and duties of Fellowship.
Pauline Chen, MD, FACS, delivers keynote address at Southwestern Pennsylvania Chapter event
Pauline Chen, MD, FACS, author of Final Exam: A Surgeon’s Reflections on Mortality, and New York Times columnist, spoke to more than 80 members and guests of the Southwestern Pennsylvania Chapter of the ACS at a dinner event November 3, 2014, at Pittsburgh’s historic Omni William Penn Hotel. Dr. Chen’s moving presentation was titled Choosing between Technology and Palliation. As a transplant surgeon, and one who treats terminally ill patients, Dr. Chen spoke on the care of the dying by physicians who often consider a patient’s death as a sign of imperfect care and, thus, a personal failure.
Also at the chapter event were outstanding senior students, selected by local hospital program directors to attend the meeting so that they could also hear Dr. Chen’s presentation. After her keynote presentation, Dr. Chen stayed to spend time and answer questions one-on-one with members of the audience.
Dr. Chen is the recipient of numerous awards, including the University of California, Los Angeles, Outstanding Physician of the Year Award and the George Longstreth Humanness Award at Yale University, New Haven, CT, for exemplifying empathy, kindness, and care in an age of advancing technology.
