Rabih A. Chaer, MD

Societal Leadership Roles

• 2011–2012: Program Committee Chair, Eastern Vascular Society
• 2013–2016: Recorder, Eastern Vascular Society
• 2016–2017: President-Elect, Eastern Vascular Society
• 2017–2018: President, Eastern Vascular Society
• 2021: Nominating Committee Chair, Eastern Vascular Society
• 2013–2014: Program Committee Chair, Society for Clinical Vascular Surgery
• 2013–2023: Young Surgeons Program Chair, Society for Clinical Vascular Surgery
• Current: Council Member, Society for Clinical Vascular Surgery
• 2015: Screening Committee Chair, American Venous Forum
• 2017: Research Committee Chair, American Venous Forum
• Current: Program Committee Member, American Venous Forum
• 2015: Distinguished Fellow, American Venous Forum
• 2014–2014: Membership Committee Chair, Vascular and Endovascular Surgery Society
• 2013–2014: Education Committee Chair, APDVS
• 2019–2025: VSB Director, American Board of Surgery
• 2024–2025: Research Committee Chair, American Board of Surgery
• Current: Member, Simulation, Research, Education Committees & EPA Task Force, APDVS
• Current: Vice Chair Elect, VSB, American Board of Surgery
• Current: ABS Quality Task Force & Future of Certification Task Force Member

SVS Service

• 2006–Present: Member, Society for Vascular Surgery
• 2011: Distinguished Fellow, Society for Vascular Surgery
• 2012–2014: Chair, Young Vascular Surgeon Committee, SVS
• Other roles: Clinical Research Committee, Education Committee, Clinical Practice Council, Leadership Committee, Conflict-of-Interest Committee, Education Council (Chair 2017–2021)
• Strategic Board of Directors (SBOD): Current Member
• SVS Scientific Publications: FEVAR Reporting Standards, IVC Filter Guidelines, Visceral Aneurysm Guidelines (Chair 2014–2018), Perioperative Care Guide (Chair)

Please briefly describe your strategic vision for the future for vascular surgery and the key role SVS must play to realize that vision.

I plan to continue the mission of branding our specialty to the public, the medical community, as well as students and residents, and affirm the role of the Vascular Surgeon as the ultimate complete vascular specialist. This, along with collaboration with other specialties such as Cardiac surgery, IC and IR, are critical to mitigate reimbursement threats. This collaboration cannot compromise on our leadership in the vascular space which should also manifest itself through a strong collaboration between industry partners and an SVS section dedicated to negotiating national PI roles for SVS members on cutting edge industry trials through a formal competency based application process. This should apply to all vascular beds, to include national and co-national PI roles on trials typically reserved for IC or IR.

I will work on objectively demonstrating the value of dedicated vascular training and board certification as they pertain to patient outcomes and cost-effective delivery of vascular care using quality metrics. This will be done using CMS data with linkage to large database analysis. Setting Vascular board certification as standard for quality care will further the leadership role of vascular surgery in the vascular space among patients and payers.

As SVS Secretary, I will work closely with the councils to convey the voice and opinions of members of different backgrounds and bring to focus matters of importance to different genders, age groups and races, under the confines of the strategic and executive board of directors and the mission of the SVS. I am at a stage of my career where I have closely worked with junior, mid-level and senior surgeons in my role as division chief, but also through my societal leadership roles, and understand the priorities for surgeons of different ages, genders and races. I am confident that I will be able to represent the society and its values, as well as members of all ages. Growing the heterogeneity of the SVS membership will be critical to attract more applicants to the specialty and mitigate expected workforce shortages.

Please highlight key activities or initiatives that exemplify your commitment to the success of SVS.

I have a long-standing service history to the SVS and have had an active participation on SVS committees since 2006. I served on the clinical research committee, the young vascular surgeon committee (Chair 2012-2014), the education committee, the clinical practice council, the education council (Chair 2017-2021), the leadership committee, and the conflict-of-interest committee.

I have contributed to several scientific publications of the SVS, including the FEVAR reporting standards, the multidisciplinary IVC filter guideline writing group, the reporting standards for endovascular treatment of chronic lower extremity peripheral artery disease, the visceral aneurysm guidelines (Chair 2014-2018), and the peri-operative care guide (Chair).

I have contributed to the VAM program for >20 years as a speaker, student and resident mentor, and PG course contributor and will be again participating in the upcoming PG course at VAM as a speaker (education session) and session co-organizer (PE session).

I have contributed to SVS podcasts and have participated in Audible Bleeding, and am supporter and follower of the SVS on social media platforms. I also routinely contribute to the JVS as an author and reviewer.

I actively participate in the VQI and regional study groups and am the current chair of the venous stent module and the VQI venous module vice chair. I will be speaking at the upcoming VQI session at VAM 2025.

I am currently a member of the Strategic Board of Directors.

Please highlight key leadership positions you hold or have held, and/or significant leadership achievements you have accomplished in vascular surgery or organized medicine and summarize how these have prepared you for the position of SVS Secretary.

I participated in a formal leadership training course at my home institution and have been actively engaged with the SVS leadership committee. I also worked and met weekly one-on-one with a leadership coach for 6 months after becoming division chief. I have held several leadership positions throughout my career:

• SVS committees: clinical research, young vascular surgeon (Chair 2012-2014), education, leadership, conflict-of-interest.
• Clinical practice council, education council (Chair 2017-2021).
• Visceral aneurysm guidelines Chair, perioperative care guide Chair.
• VQI: venous stent module Chair, venous module vice Chair.
• Home institution residency and fellowship program director for a decade, vascular surgery division chief, co-director of the heart and vascular institute.
• Vascular societies: president (EVS), Recorder (EVS), program committee chair (SCVS, EVS), young surgeons (SVS, EVS, SCVS).
• Vascular education: PD, ACGME milestones 1.0, 2.0 writer, education committee chair (APDVS), Simulation (APDVS, SCVS), VSB VSITE committee chair, education council chair (SVS), EPA task force and scope council (APDVS, VSB), VSB vice chair elect.

All of these have helped me prepare for the Secretary position by allowing me to develop a deeper understanding of reimbursement and turf related threats, workforce and quality needs, and forge solid relationships with industry partners, and very collaborative relationships with other specialties such as IC and IR. On a personal level, this helped shape my emotional intelligence, my ability to handle conflict and troubleshoot adverse situations on the fly, and my appreciation of the needs and challenges of surgeons of different ages, genders and backgrounds. These roles reinforced the need to keep strict confidence, demonstrate a united front publicly, fulfill work expectations and attend all meetings on time, and disagree without being disagreeable. They also honed my listening and communications skills, with needs to pivot to a different mode of communication based on the age group of the audience and the crisis at play.

Please highlight activities or initiatives that best exemplify your commitment to clinical and academic excellence in vascular surgery.

I have authored or co-authored >250 peer-reviewed manuscripts in various scientific journals. I have written 33 book chapters and presented my work at national meetings. Currently, my clinical research focuses on aneurysm disease, venous disease and pulmonary embolism. My aneurysm related research focuses on predicting the risk of rupture of aortic aneurysms based on biomarker testing and microbubble ultrasound imaging. I am also a co-investigator on several aneurysm device industry sponsored trials and had a funded RO3 grant to investigate the growth potential of small AAA using serial contrast enhanced microbubble ultrasound imaging and biomarker testing.

I am also site PI or a co-I on several industry-sponsored venous clinical trials and am the current site PI on a national NIH sponsored trial, PE-Tract, to evaluate the outcomes of various interventions for sub massive pulmonary embolism.

My work on PE has helped guide treatment for patients with PE on a national level by identifying patients who benefit from intervention and describing racial disparities in the treatment of PE. I established the first vascular surgery led PERT in the country in 2014 and continue to advocate for vascular surgeons to take a leadership role in the management of PE. I co-organized a PE session that will be featured at the PGC of VAM 2025.

I have also co-authored/chaired several writing committee guidelines for the SVS.

I have been an invited speaker at national and international symposia sponsored by a number of academic organizations including the American College of Surgeons, the American Venous Forum, the Society for Vascular Surgery, the Eastern Vascular Society, the Charing Cross symposium in London, the Cardiovascular Research and Therapeutics conference, the Controversies in vascular surgery meeting in Paris, VIVA, and the Veith symposium. I have been invited to lecture as a visiting professor nationally and internationally, most recently at the University of Illinois in Chicago, the Medical College of Wisconsin as the Towne speaker and the University of Athens.