President's Corner

Welcome to the AACD website. The AACD conference in Tucson Arizona in March of 2010 was an unbelievable success with more than double the attendance of the 2009 conference. Attendees were able to enjoy 60 degree and 70 degree weather with sunshine. With the increased number of attendees and the nine industry exhibitors including J2 group and Oracle corp. serving as Silver level exhibitors, this was one of the most financially successful meetings we have enjoyed in over eight years.

Also, for the first time, we were associated with a pre-meeting conference that was hosted by Surgical Directions. A number of AACD members were able to attend this special nonCME offering on Thursday evening and Friday morning. This was not only beneficial as an offering for current AACD members but some of Surgical Directions’ clients attending the session decided to stay for the weekend and attend the AACD meeting. This turned out to be a win-win for both organizations.

The year 2010 has already been a very exciting year. The AACD website has been totally redesigned by Dr. Paul St. Jacques and the website committee.   We now have a very graphically appealing website that will have expanded offerings in the members-only area.   Please feel free to go to the members-only section and check it out.

At the board meeting in Tucson there was an agreement to start two new dues payment categories. One category is for three year membership, currently providing a $50 discount for those who would like to pay multiple years dues. In addition to this, we have initiated a lifetime member category which is currently valued at $1500. However if you have already paid your 2010 dues and would like to move up to the lifetime membership category, that is available for $1325 if you pay before December 31, 2010.

Plans have already begun for the 2011th meeting which will be held in Huntington Beach, California. Please save the dates of March 11-13, 2011. Also note that there may be another premeeting conference starting on March 10. In addition to the premeeting activities , we are also looking into the opportunity to have an extended post meeting day on Sunday. So, we would encourage individuals to look into returning to their home cities on Monday morning thus allowing them to fully participate in all of the operating room management activities. Plus, this provides us with an opportunity to enjoy a dinner on Sunday evening and do a post meeting debriefing for those who would like to review the many important ideas that will come out of this meeting and how they may best utilize them in their own practices.

The Journal of Clinical Anesthesia is the official journal of the American Association of Clinical Directors and we are proud to announce that Dr. Pamela Fox will serve as the associate editor to the Journal. Dr. Fox will be looking for authors who would like to submit a review paper on different aspects of operating room management. She can be reached by email at pamela-e-fox@sbcglobal.net.

The AACD has been actively participating in other society meetings in order to raise the awareness of the importance of operating room management. This includes participating at the American Society of Anesthesiologist’s Conference on Practice Management which was held in January 2010. Over 120 participants attended the three-hour pre-meeting AACD session. Members of the AACD will also be traveling to Japan in June to present operating room management issues at the Australiasian Congress of Anesthesiologist being held in association with the Japanese Society of Anesthesiologist meeting.   Also in the works, is a panel at the New York Postgraduate Association (NYPGA) scheduled for Friday morning December 10, 2010. All AACD members are encouraged to come see us at these meetings or to inform their colleagues who may be attending the meeting.

It has been my pleasure to serve as the AACD president and I look forward to the next 10 months. Please feel free to contact me if you would like to participate in AACD activities including authoring newsletter articles, developing resources for the website or participating in committee activities. All members are welcomed and encouraged to actively participate in the activities of the society. Please feel free to e-mail me at MikePublication@gmail.com

 

best regards,

Mike

Michael P. Smith, MD, MS Ed

AACD President

Partner, Professional Anesthesia Service Inc.

Summa Health System