As I look at outside – I can see the remnants of the recent snowfall in the northeast. The temperature reads a cool 24 degrees but in Jacksonville, FL (or JAX) apparently its 85º. I can’t wait for the new year! By the time this blog is uploaded, it will be just about a month till the 2016 Academic Surgical Congress (ASC), which is shaping up to be hottest place in the world for academic surgery.
The temps on Feb 2, 3 and 4 in JAX may only be predicted to be in the 60s, but the science and networking at the ASC will be scorching! This year we have broken yet another record in terms of number of abstracts submitted and more than 1000 people have already pre-registered for the conference and its not even January yet! Below are some highlights to look forward at ASC 2016:
- More than 1100 high quality scientific presentations.
- A new Poster Session to accommodate the record number of abstracts.
- An ASC Celebration – dance party and light show like never before- DJ’ed by the one and only Dorry Segev.
- Inspiring Presidential addresses by Sharon Weber (title: Our Greatest Resource) and Justin Dimick (title: The Rookie Advantage).
- First public unveiling of results from the FIRST (Flexibility In duty hour Requirements for Surgical Trainees) trial.
- AAS Founders lecture by John Birkmeyer, SUS Rosyln Lecture by Mary Hawn and the BJS Lecture by Henrik Kehlet.
- Hot Topic and SUS Presidential Sessions featuring Chairs of Surgery discussing the future of surgery and what it will take to achieve academic success in the future.
- Lifetime Achievement Award Presentation to Gene Moore – Trauma Surgeon and Editor of J Trauma and Acute Care Surgery.
- AWS Session on What to Wear and How to Project your Best Self.
- Hot Topics and Issues Committee Sessions on Mindfulness, Emotional Intelligence and Professional Coaching to Prevent Burnout.
- Topics such as Interviewing for leadership positions and non cognitive skills for leadership during the SUS Mid Career Professional Development Course.
- The Two Day, highly-renowned AAS/SUS Grant Writing Workshop (a must for those about to put in their first grants!!).
- Funky exhibits from our corporate sponsors.
- Dedicated Networking events for New Members, Medical Students and Residents.
- AAS Presidential Session on “Falling Forward” and learning from ones mistakes.
- A special session on how to get your manuscripts accepted by the Editors of Surgery and the Journal of Surgical Research.
And if these weren’t enough reasons, there will be more than a thousand potential new friends and collaborators to meet at the ASC 2016. This year Kasper Wang from the SUS and our entire program team from both societies along with BSC Management have worked extra hard to put together the most diverse, exciting and technologically advanced meeting yet. So take that trip down to JAX- and enjoy the hottest few days of academic surgery in 2016.
See you there!
Report from the 2015 President-Elect