AAS News Summer 2009

8/7/2019 AAS News Summer 2009

1/7

P R E S I D E N S M E S S A G EDr. Kevin Staveley-OCarroll

Te Association for Academic Surgery (AAS) is a society focused on the development of young acadsurgeons. According to its constitution and bylaws, it is not confined to any country but is an internasociety, available to young surgeons worldwide. Although the structure of medical care and academic suvaries throughout the world, young surgeons everywhere can benefit from a society focused on their acaand career development. Te theme for this years summer executive council retreat was extending the AASinternational society. We hope to accomplish this in the following ways: expanding international memband representation at our annual meeting, increasing our visiting fellowship exchanges with other counand offering the Fundamentals of Surgical Research and Career Development courses abroad.

Although our annual meeting is held in the US, we have had a great deal of participation from suaround the world in the past. Te 2009 Academic Surgical Congress (ASC) featured abstracts from (30), Canada (12), Ireland (8), Australia (3), Brazil (2), the UK (2), Germany (2), China (1), and Egypoverall, these abstracts from abroad constituted 8% of the papers presented. It can be challenging for our international members to attend a meeting so far away. Tus, it is critical to institute changes that make itfor our international colleagues to become active participants in the Association and the ASC. Terefore, considering reducing membership and meeting registration fees for members travelling from abroad.

But in reality, the most important thing we can do to boost international participation is to increasocietys exposure through travelling fellowships and courses outside the US. Over the past two yearhave established travelling fellow exchanges with the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons (RACSthe aiwan Surgical Association. Drs. Scott LeMaire and Peter Nelson have represented the AAS as fin Australasia, and Drs. Daniel Albo and Nipun Merchant have represented the AAS in aiwan. Drs. Nand Merchant will be reporting their recent experiences abroad in subsequent editions of this newslette

will be accepting applications for next years travelling fellows later this year. We have recently been incontact with European surgical societies to plan similar fellowships on that continent.

Of all that our society has to offer, perhaps our most marketable commodities are our courses. We nowheld combined career development/surgical research courses in Africa (July 2008 and 2009) and Au(May 2009). Te courses in Africa were largely the result of the vision and hard work of our past presDr. Fiemu Nwariaku. Tis year, the course has once again been quite successful under the leadership Global Affa irs Committee led by Drs. Benedict Nwomeh and Evan Nadler. Tis group is actively plaa similar course to be held in India in the near future. Our Secretary, Dr. LeMaire, summarizes on3 the Developing a Career in Academic Surgery course that was held in conjunction with the R

Annual Scientific Congress. Tis course was particularly effective in providing positive exposure foAssociation: AAS leaders, there to teach the course, were also quite active as presenters and moderatthe larger meeting. Tis course was

largely made possible by our AAStravelling fellowship, which allowedDr. LeMaire to go to the RACSmeeting in 2008 and establisha relationship with Mr. RichardHanney, his counterpart from

Australia who visited the ASC in2008. Funding for this course hasbeen secured for the next five years.

We hope to build on these modelsof success as we develop fellowshipprograms and courses in othercountries.

ASSOCIAION FOR ACADEMIC SURGERY SUMMER 2

N

Te 2009 Executive Council Strategic Retreat: pondering opportu

to extend the international reach of the AAS.

D. Kevin Sav-OCarol

I N H I S I S S U E

Presidents Message

1

Abstracts Due for 2010 ASC

2Secretarys Report:

AAS Award Opportunities09 Research Fellowship Award Winner

RACS Update

2

NEW FEAURE: Researchllowship Award Success Stories

4

Information &echnology Review:

Online Social Networking5

009 Fundamentals of SurgicalResearch Course

6

09 Career Development Course

7

Video Footage Needed forRecruitment Project

7

Continued


2/7


3/7

AAS Student ravel GrantApplications dueNovember 1, 2009

As part of our mission to increase diversity in our membership, the AAS is pleased to offer the 4th annuaStudent ravel Grant. Tis award is presented to a medical student from an underrepresented minorit

will include a $500 stipend, hotel accommodations, and registration for the ASC in San Antonio, exaare soliciting nominations from department chairs and clerkship directors. Eligible candidates should san essay and a letter of support from their chairperson or clerkship director. Te essay should be no mor300 words in length and focus on the candidates commitment to becoming a leader in academic surgerdeadline for RECEIP of applications is 11:59 pm CS on November 1, 2009.

AAS Foundation Research Fellowship AwardApplications dueDecember 1, 2009

Tis award, which is supported by the A AS Foundation, is aimed at eligible residents or fellows whcompleted at least 2 years of postgraduate training in a surgical discipline. Te award is intended tthe winner the opportunity to spend 2 years in full-time research or clinica l studies with an A AS me

Applicants must be member candidates or active members of the AAS, and the mentor must be anmember of the AAS. Te award of $20,000 per year for 2 years may be used for salary support or fdirect-cost expenditures of the research. Te award is to be expended solely for the purpose of the sponresearch. Funding for the Award will begin July 1, 2010. Te deadline for RECEIP of applicati11:59 pm CS on December 1, 2009. Finalists will be invited for interviews at the 2010 ASC i

Antonio, exas.

UPDAE: COLLABORAING WIH HE ROYAL AUSRALASIANCOLLEGE OF SURGEONS

AAS/R ACS Younger Fellows Committee Leadership Exchange

Dr. Peter Nelson represented the AAS at the RACS Younger Fellows Forum and Annual Scientific Coin Brisbane in May 2009. Look for Dr. Nelsons report about his experience in Brisbane in an upcoedition of this newsletter. Te RACS Younger Fellows Committee is in the process of selecting onemembers to attend the 2010 ASC in San Antonio, and soon we will be asking for applications for th

AAS representative, who will attend the RACS meeting in Perth in 2010.

Te Inaugural Developing a Careerin Academic Surgery Course

Te course, presented by the AAS in

partnership with the RACS Section ofAcademic Surgery, was given in Brisbaneon May 5, 2009. In attendance were 56registrants plus 22 faculty members;seven of the faculty were from the

AAS. Evaluation forms asked attendeesto rate the course from 1 (poor) to5 (excellent); the form return rate

was 58%, and the ratings of the courseoverall were exclusively either 4 (verygood) or 5, with the mean being 4.73.Importantly, when asked How wouldyou rate the influence of this course on

your likelihood to pursue that interest?(ie, Are you more or less likely to pursuean academic career following thiscourse?), most respondents indicatedthat they felt more inclined to pursueacademic surgery after taking this course.Because of the success of the course, theRACS Section of Academic Surgery hasasked the AAS to assist with organizinga second course to be conducted in Perthin 2010; plans for the curriculum of thiscourse are underway.

Wie h2009 AAS

RESEARCHFELLOWSHIP

AWARD

Te AAS is pleased to announce

he winner of its 2009 Research

ellowship Award, which is

ade possible through the

enerous sponsorship of the AAS

oundation. Dr. Seth Krantz

as been selected to receive

30,000 over a 2-year period

r his work entitled Te Rolef Snail in Pancreatic Ductal

denocarcinoma Local Invasion

nd Disease Progression. Dr.

rantz is currently a Resident

hysician at the Northwestern

niversity Feinberg School

f Medicine in Chicago. He

ceived his medical degree

om Northwestern University

nd a B.S. from the University

f Michigan.


4/7

R E S E A R CH F E L L O W H I P AWA R D S :PAV ING HE ROAD O SUCCES S IN ACA DEMIC SURGE

Dr. Scott Pinchot, recipient of the 2007-2009 AAS Resident Research Fellowship Awa

Editors Note: In this edition of the AAS Newsletter, we are proud to introduce a new feature highlighting the impof AAS Research Fellowship Awards on the careers of previous recipients. Te AAS began giving these awards in 19with the goal of providing the necessary support to enable residents and fellows to spend two years in full-time baor clinical research under the mentorship of an AAS member. Until recently, the awards were made possible throuthe generous support of several corporate sponsors, including United States Surgical, Astra Zeneca, Ethicon, Inc., aKarl Storz Endoscopy. In 2008, the AAS Foundation committed to supporting future Research Fellowship Awards;Foundation gave its first award in Fort Myers in February 2009. In recognition of their strong support and commitmto the development of young academic surgeons, the award has been renamed the AAS Foundation Research Fellows

Award (see page 3 for the 2010 award announcement).

Dr. Scott N. Pinchot is the recipient of the 2007-2009 AAS Resident Research Fellowship Award. His mentor, DHerbert Chen, is the past president of the AAS and is an active supporter of AAS-funded research endeavors for aspiring surgeon-scientist. In our first installment of this new feature, Dr. Pinchot describes how receiving a ReseaFellowship Award enabled him to conduct important studies in the pathobiology of neuroendocrine tumors whsolidifying his desire to build a career as an academic surgeon.

I believe the essence of surgery is rooted in a unique blend of technical skill, creativity, and compassion. surgery is an art, marked not only by creativity but also by the command of knowledge necessary to heaform and function. As a medica l student, my passion for surgery was initial ly rooted in this notion. Hothe first two years of my general surgery residency brought me to the realization that to be a true lea

the field of surgery would take more than these qualities. As Dr. Faith Fitzgerald once said, it is curthis primal wonderment, that stimulates exploration [and] engages both imagination and intelligenceme, it is this truthfacilitated by the resources afforded to me as the recipient of the AAS Resident ReFellowshipthat has secured my decision to pursue a career as a surgeon-scientist.

Although success as a surgeon-scientist no doubt requires substantial training, a thorough understandthe scientific method, scientific rigor, and patience to deal with the methodologies of modern science, takes the skill to recognize the medical challenges we face every day in our clinics or in the operating

As someone wiser than I once said, Surgery is limited. It is operating on someone who has no place tI was recently reminded of this notion by a patient I saw in the general surgery clinic; the encountcertainly shaped my long-term career goals and research endeavors. My patient, a burly six-foot farmerural Wisconsin, had recently been diagnosed with metastatic carcinoid disease. I knew that neuroendtumors such as carcinoid cancers often metastasize to the liver, and once there, these tumors debilitate p

with symptoms ranging from uncontrollable diarrhea to flushing and skin rashes. Unfortunately, sresection, although potentially curative, often cannot be used because most patients are not candidahepatectomy; what is more, nonoperative treatments are often limited in their effi cacy. Clearly, it is esthat we develop alternate forms of therapy.

Over the past two years, with both the funding and educational opportunities offered to me by the AAS ReResearch Fellowship, I have sought to clearly delineate the roles of specific enzymes in the signal transdpathways regulating neuroendocrine tumorigenesis. Over the past two years, under the guidance of my rementor, Dr. Herbert Chen, I have sought to elucidate both the in vitro and in vivo effi cacy of pharmacologic and Raf-1 pathway activators in human carcinoid cell lines and in murine models of metastatic neuroendcancer. In addition, I have supplemented my full-time research endeavors with a curriculum focused on biostatistics, and experimental design and principles. Tese skillsthe ability to think and read criticallycer

will help me to enter the surgical workforce as a scientifically disciplined surgeon.

My long-term objective is to become a lifelong surgical scientist; without a doubt, it has been bolstered fundamentals of research and scientific rigor that I have taken away from my AAS-funded research exper

After my surgical residency, I hope to pursue further surgical training in a research-oriented fellowssurgical oncology. As an aspiring surgeon-scientist, I also hope to eventually obtain a faculty positiomajor teaching or university-based hospital and to initiate a research program of my own. By followcareer pathway that integrates research into my own clinical practice, I hope to establish a practice nich

will increase the quality of surgical care and allow for scientific progress within the field of surgery.

Renowned astronomer Galileo Galilei once quipped, All truths are easy to understand once thdiscovered; the point is to discover them. Without a doubt, my AAS-funded research experience has givopportunities to discover like no other, ultimately culminating in travel to several national and internascientific meetings and resulting in over 15 peer-reviewed scientific manuscripts. I am sure that thelearned along the way will help me to uncover truths of my own that will lead me to a successful and fulcareer as a surgeon-scientist.

For more information

bout the AAS Foundation,

or to make a contribution,

please contact Jill Smith at

[email protected]

10-437-1606, ext. 114

D. S Pi

New

Fatur!

Wiut ut, AAS-fud a

ee given pui veli he, ulia

ulmiaig in av

evea aa adieaa eificig ad ulig

in ve 15 e-evedeific aui.


5/7

INFORM AION & ECHNOLOGY RE V IEW:O N L I N E S O C I A L N E W OR K I N G F OR S U R G E ON

Dr. Mireille Astrid Moise, Vascular Surgeon and avid Facebook user,on behalf of the Information & echnology Committee

QUESION: How can I use online social networking tools for my surgical practice and research

Professional Online Social Networking

All the world is atwitter these days. You may find yourself wondering what is with the constant buzz

online social networksWorld Wide Web sites that allow users to interact with individuals and gover the Internetand how can it possibly be parlayed into something that approaches respectabilitprofessionalism. Fortunately for you, social networking has come a long way since its somewhat blembeginnings. Tis article provides an introduction to social networking for the surgeon.

Facebook

Facebook (www.facebook.com) is the most popular social networking site, now with over 200 millionusers. Middle-aged individuals (ages 35-54 years) constitute the most rapidly growing population of Facusers. People can register for a Facebook account with an email address. Users then may create a peprofile with items such as contact information, photos, and an employment or education history. Tedesignate other members as friends and restrict or open the availability of their personal informatfriends or everyone on Facebook. Facebook users can send confidential messages to other users or write comments on another users wall, and all of these interactions can be restricted or undone by the ac

holder. In addition, Facebook users can join public or private groups that require approval, and they caninformation though these groups by posting photos, videos, or messages to bulletin boards.

In addition to allowing you to get back in touch with friends from elementary school, Facebook cayou maintain your professional contacts. For example, you may befriend professional colleagues fromresidency program or from an editorial board. Te most important aspect of ones profile from a professtandpoint is the list of affi liations. By typing in your college alma mater, medical school alma materesidency location, Facebook can suggest to you potential friends, and you can also search for friends whothe same affi liations as you. In addition, many institutions host groups that allow members to commuTe Association of Women Surgeons and the American College of Surgeons both host Facebook gas do the New England Journal of Medicine and PLoS.org. Many medical schools, such as the Uniof Pennsylvania, host a young physician alumni group. By befriending this group, you are automaupdated about upcoming events at your alma mater, as well as your local alumni group. Non-univaffi liations also exist. Te Women in Vascular Surgery group, for example, keeps members up to date only the local gossip but also other career opportunities.

Many people are concerned about privacy and security when using social networks. Wary that you unwittingly befriend an enemy or, worse yet, a stalker, you do have the option to ignore a friend reFacebook does not tell the other party you ignored them. More often than not, that person will proforget that they sent the friend request because it was not reciprocated. It is advisable to cast a wide netchoosing your affi liations, but be selective about your friends. You may not want an old acquaintanccollege posting a comment on your wall reliving your Las Vegas escapades from fifteen years ago. Yoremove unwanted information or restrict who can post data about you. It is important to take the timeyour privacy filters. If you select the default privacy setting, your Facebook profile will be visible to vianyone who Googles you, including your patients, but you can restrict access to only those individuals you designate as friends. If you wish to have a professional presence on Facebook, you might consider hseparate personal and professional accounts so that you do not share vacation photos or daily chatteyour patients or colleagues.

LinkedIn

A social networking site that avoids some of the pitfalls and prevents some of the social faux pas comin Facebook is LinkedIn (www.linkedin.com). Like Facebook, LinkedIn allows you to create a profile with your location, occupation, and education data. You can join groups according to your speeducational background, and interests. Many universities and organizations host an alumni group, incthe American College of Surgeons and the National Institutes of Health. LinkedIn also contains a job psection, allowing you to keep tabs on the job market. In addition, LinkedIn has a facility for recommeother people, and recommendations can be useful if you are looking for a job or competing for a positi

D. Mieil Asd M

Oli a kig an let fy g ad s int i olg

ad an autee ad eve

in yu d. Sigd in h

ae h ea en f

ib jo ad apui.


6/7

Sermo

Another social networking site with an educational component to it is Sermo (www.sermo.com). Creaa physician, Sermo brings the medical community together to discuss issues relevant to physicians. postings range from How would you treat this patient? to Te Health-Care Crisis, the musicaaddition, you can test your medical knowledge by guessing the diagnosis from a Sermo snapshot feasome form of visual media: photo, radiogram, etc, accompanied by a short history. Te site also offecontinuing education opportunities in the form of readily available short articles and quizzes. Of interacademic surgeons, panels discussing some facet of clinical research do come up from time to time anbe a great resource.

witter

A recent addition to the growing collection of social networking outlets is witter (www.twitter.com). works by allowing you to update others on your comings and goings in a 140-word tweet. Anyone caa tweet, and if you have a favorite tweeter, you can set yourself up to get an update anytime they twrecent report came out that a hospital was using witter to update patients families on a patients sustatus. Tis novel idea could potentially work in a practice, as well.

KEY POINS

Online social networking is an excellent way for you to get and stay in contact with colleagues alearn about conferences and events in your field. Staying connected in this manner has the potenopen doors for possible job and research opportunities.

With social networking, cast a wide net. Draw from undergraduate, graduate school, and previousexperiences.

Always be professional; do not post anything you wouldnt want a patient, a potential employer, omother to read.

FUNDAMENALS OF SURGICA L R ESEARCHCELIBRAES IS 20H YE AR

Dr. Adam Berger, Co-Director of the 2009 FSRC

I have had the great pleasure of planning the 20th Annual Fundamentals of Surgical Research C(FSRC) along with AAS past-president Dr. Herb Chen. Tis year, we have consolidated the course ma

into one day so that residents, fellows, and junior attendings can attend both the FSRC course (on FOctober 9th) and the Career Development Course (on Saturday, October 10th). We have also addedexpert speakers to discuss outcomes research in addition to basic science and clinical research. Te commorning sessions will feature discussions on choosing mentors, obtaining funding, and presenting youin abstract, manuscript, and oral formats. Our keynote speaker this year is Dr. Craig Kent from the Uniof Wisconsin, who will discuss being a full-time clinician while maintaining a successful laboratory.

In the afternoon, in response to previous participant demand for more talks on clinical and outcomes res we will have two separate breakout sessionsone for basic science and the other for clinical/ouresearch. Te basic science sessions will discuss laboratory management (developing hypotheses, labonotebook, and statistics) and laboratory techniques (molecular techniques, animal models, stem cells, ethe first clinical and outcomes session, we will feature talks on starting a clinical research program (outcsurgical education, and funding). A second session will address the subject of large databases, such as S

National Inpatient Sample, and NSQIP. Te day will end with a wine-and-cheese reception and a chanparticipants to network with course faculty and AAS leadership.

I would like to thank Herb Chen for his assistance in putting together what will certainly be a terrific proI would also like to thank members of the AAS Education Committee for helping by volunteering ttalks or to moderate sessions. Finally, I would like to thank the entire faculty of the program for volunttheir time to make this a special program for all attendees.

D. Aa Bege

Sa kig

f h sugn:www.facebook.com

www.linkedin.com

www.sermo.com

www.twitter.com


7/7

D. Pe Nln

D. Lillan K

FIFH ANNUALCAR EER DEVELOPMEN COURSE

Drs. Lillian Kao and Peter Nelson, Co-Chairs of the Leadership Committee

Have you ever thought, If I only knew then what I know nowor If only someone had told me? Thas developed a one-day Career Development Course (CDC) to impart advice on all aspects of beacademic surgeon to surgical trainees and faculty embarking on academic careers. Te CDC provides a for attendees to have their questions about academic surgery answered, to network with peers from all athe country, and to establish a dialogue with the AAS leadership.

Te CDC covers a wide breadth of topics relevant to academic surgeons. opics covered include strafor balancing clinical and academic responsibilities, evaluating offers for academic positions, identappropriate mentors, getting promoted, pursuing basic science and/or translational/outcomes researchmaintaining your personal health. Te speakers lined up are outstanding and represent all spectruacademic surgery, from basic science research to translational and clinical research to surgical educatioinnovation. Furthermore, in keeping with the mission of AAS to promote academic surgery worldwide foster international relationships, the CDC is pleased to have Andrew Hill, MBChB, MD, from AucNew Zealand, as a visiting speaker.

Tis year, the CDC is also fortunate to have John D. Birkmeyer, MD, as the keynote speaker. He George D. Zuidema Professor and Chair of Surgical Outcomes Research at the University of Micand serves as the Director of the Michigan Surgical Collaborative for Outcomes Research and Evalu(M-SCORE). He is an editor of the Dartmouth Atlas of Health Care, chair of the expert panel on evid

based hospital referral for the Leapfrog Group, and chair of the Measurement and Evaluation Committhe American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program. He is an NIH-fuhighly published, internationally recognized leader in health services and outcomes research in surger

will be speaking on Developing a Vision for the Future Academic Surgeon. We are looking forwhearing about and sharing in his vision.

In addition, this year, the CDC will have small-group lunch sessions to give attendees a chance toinformal, loosely-structured, one-on-one conversations with AAS leaders and the expert faculty conventhe conference. opics this year will include:

Protected timereally protect yourself from yourself?1.

What research opportunities are available in surgical education?2.

Jumpstarting a meaningful research interest in residency or fellowship3.

Networking with collaborators: How to begin?4.

Pay for Performancewhat does it really mean?5.

Tese lunchtime sessions will be a great opportunity for the course attendees and faculty to meet and in

Te AAS strongly encourages everyone who is interested to attend. Te CDC will complement and immefollow the Fundamentals of Surgical Research Course in Chicago. Te CDC will be held on Saturday, O10th. Please spread the word, as this promises to be an exciting and informative course!

AASFALL COURSES

AuigNe Ieiv!

Institutional GroupDiscounts

AAS CareerDevelopmentScholarship

Career DevelopmentCourse Recruitment

Award

For details go to

ww.aasurg.org/fallcourses.htm

C A L L F O R V I D E O F O R H E S U RG I C A L R E C R U I M E N V I D E O P RO J E C

Dr. Peter Nelson

Te Surgery Recruitment Video Project is coming along nicely, and release is anticipated at the 201Academic Surgical Congress, but we need your help. We have over 90 hours of interviews captured otape, but we need more filler B-roll video to use to round out the project. We are looking for videof cases in the OR, of surgery teams in action, of research laboratory scenes and activity, of teachinrounds on the wards, of patient testimonialsvirtually anything that you feel will enhance thappeal of the video to aspiring medical students. If you or your institution has video that we couluse, or if you have any questions at all, please contact me at [email protected] , andcan provide more details and coordinate the transfer. Tanks for your interest and critical input tthis important and exciting project.

AAS News Summer 2009

Documents

Transcript of AAS News Summer 2009