NESVS President
Michael Belkin, MD
Brigham & Women's Hospital
Boston, MAAs we enter our 40th year, the New England Society for Vascular Surgery, the oldest regional vascular society in North America, has much to be proud of and even more to look forward to. Our Society has been remarkably successful in advancing the art and science of vascular and endovascular surgery here in the New England region. We have also been successful in building interest in our profession among the regional medical students and surgical residents. From my perspective, our Annual Meeting represents the high point of the academic year and is always a chance to build on longstanding relationships, as well as develop new relationships with professional colleagues.
Our recently completed 39th Annual Meeting in Boston was enormously successful. Dr. Daniel Bertges, Chairman of the Program Committee, did a spectacular job in selecting a high quality, diverse and stimulating program. The quality of our program was emphasized by our outgoing Recorder, Dr. Mark Fillinger, who noted that our 85% acceptance rate on publications in the Journal of Vascular Surgery is the highest of any regional society and is on par with papers presented at the Society of Vascular Surgery meeting. Dr. Larry Hoepp put together a remarkable student initiative program that was attended by 15 residents and students, as well as numerous society members. The great feedback and appreciation we receive from these young professionals is always very rewarding and we can take pride in our efforts to attract these bright young trainees to our profession.
Once again, the Postgraduate Course on aneurysms orchestrated by Dr. Marc Schermerhorn and Dr. Christopher Kwolek was extremely successful. As one would expect, President Bauer Sumpio’s Presidential Address entitled “Too Small To Fail - The Prisoner’s Dilemma” was scholarly and provocative, offering all of us insight in how to succeed in the increasingly multidisciplinary world of vascular care.
The 40th Annual Meeting of the New England Society of Vascular Surgery will be held at Stowe Mountain Lodge, in Stow Vermont on September 27-29, 2013. In my opinion, our very best meetings occur when we go north. The collegiality found and nurtured in these more intimate environments always enhance the meeting. I urge you to set those dates on your calendar now.
Our society remains financially strong and we benefit from a committed and talented leadership and administrative team. The enormous regional talent we have to draw upon makes ours the strongest of all regional vascular societies. I finally would like to thank you for the privilege you have bestowed upon me in selecting me as your President for the next year. I have had no greater honor in my career as a New England vascular surgeon. We will work hard to make this year our most successful ever. I look forward to seeing you at Stowe next September where I will thank you in person.