Vascular Annual Meeting Program Taking Shape

Feb 13, 2019 Re-posted from the February 2019 issue of Vascular Specialist

Session by session, time slot by time slot, the 2019 Vascular Annual Meeting is coming together.

“Dr. (Vik) Kashyap and his Postgraduate Education Committee have finished selecting breakfast sessions and postgraduate courses, and the members are well on the way to finalizing workshops and concurrent sessions,” said Dr. Matthew Eagleton. He chairs the Program Committee, which oversees all the programming of the Vascular Annual Meeting.

Also selected, said Dr. Eagleton, are topics for most of the “Ask the Expert” sessions. These debuted in 2018 and were so popular that in some instances hopeful participants had to be turned away; additional sessions are slated for this year. “Attendees continue to tell us that they like the small-group setting and the chance to talk with the presenters,” Dr. Eagleton said.

“Particularly with the non-research-related events, we can respond both to feedback from the previous year and the suggestions and proposals for the current year in selecting subjects,” said Dr. Eagleton. “That helps us build a VAM program of interest to a wide range of participants.”

For example, the “Advanced Tools for Vascular Surgeon Wellness” breakfast session will tackle surgeon wellness and avoiding burnout. Those topics are so relevant and significant that SVS has a task force addressing them, said Dr. Eagleton.

Other requests for 2019 include:

  • Scheduling workshops throughout VAM. This year’s workshops will on Thursday and Friday afternoons, instead of holding them all on Wednesday.
  • The latest on issues vascular surgeons face frequently. “There’s a great demand for information on hemodialysis, for example, this year and every year,” said Dr. Eagleton. “We’re responding with a breakfast session and other programming.”
  • Programming specifically for Fellows.
  • Career setting-specific gatherings. “The needs of our academic and hospital-based surgeons are different from those in private practice, and surgeons at the beginning of their careers face different challenges than those established practitioners face,” Dr. Eagleton said. “We need to, and will, meet a host of different needs, including career paths, practice management, even exit strategies.”

As for research, abstracts and videos were to be selected by the end of February for podium presentations: scientific sessions, the two VESS sessions, International Forum and International Fast Talk, plus the Poster Competition and the Interactive Poster Session.

“With each additional component identified and slotted, all of us involved with creating this year’s meeting are getting more excited,” said Dr. Eagleton. “It’s going to be a great, informative meeting. No matter what stage of career, from trainee to seasoned veteran, we’ll offer sessions of interest and value.

“Don’t miss it.”

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