With this issue of the Vascular Specialist, the SVS pages are focused primarily on the upcoming Vascular Annual Meeting in San Diego. The end of May will be here before we know it, and with it, the start of our most important scientific meeting of the year.

This year is the first for the Alexander W. Clowes Distinguished Lecture, and will be delivered by William Sessa, Ph.D. Each year, the lecture recipient will be an esteemed vascular biologist or vascular surgeon-scientist who has demonstrated an exceptional commitment to research in vascular disease and who exemplified the qualities of Dr. Clowes.

[[{"type":"media","view_mode":"media_large","fid":"1297","field_deltas":{},"link_text":null,"attributes":{"height":90,"width":437,"style":"width: 300px; height: 62px; float: right; border-width: 2px; border-style: solid; margin: 2px;","class":"media-image media-element file-media-large","data-delta":"1"},"fields":{}}]]For the first time since the 2013 Vascular Annual Meeting in San Francisco, SVS and The Society of Thoracic Surgeons are teaming up to present a summit on aortic topics of mutual interest and expertise.

An excellent surgeon. A vascular scientist regarded as one of the best. And an even finer human being.

All of the above describe the late Alexander Whitehill Clowes, MD, who died of a brain glioblastoma in July 2015 at age 68.

“The Matrix” is more than a movie. It’s also part of the May 3 Vascular Research Initiatives Conference in Minneapolis, Minn.

“Matrix Revolution: Vascular Repair and Regeneration,” is the title of the Translational Panel at VRIC, to be moderated by SVS President Dr. Ronald Fairman. Dr. Christopher K. Breuer will speak on "Development of Tissue Engineered Grafts for Use in Congenital Heart Surgery” and Jeffrey Lawson will discuss "Human Tissue Engineered Blood Vessels: Clinical Experience in Dialysis Access and Arterial Disease."

Because of challenges involved in transferring patients with ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysms from one facility to another, the Western Vascular Society has adopted a set of 15 guidelines on how to make that decision and help standardize care.

Read about the guidelines plus the selection and development process behind them in the March issue of the Journal of Vascular Surgery.  

The SVS Patient Safety Organization has announced the winners of the 2016 VQI Participation Awards. This program, in its second year, recognizes the importance of active participation in the VQI as a critical component of the quality improvement mission. VQI centers may receive up to three “stars,” based on the extent of their participation in three areas: long-term follow-up (LTFU) reporting, regional quality group meetings and vascular procedure registries  

The SVS has begun work on creating an Alternative Payment Model for SVS members to use for reimbursement under the new Quality Payment Program. A task force has been named and an operational plan drawn up, under the supervision of the SVS Executive Committee.   

The SVS Government Relations office on Capitol Hill, helps members and their patients through not only its legislative and regulatory work but also oversight of the SVS Political Action Committee.

Successes include:

Legislative

A major success after 10 years of advocacy was the repeal of the Sustainable Growth Rate formula, part of the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA) of 2015. This law also reformed Medicare physician payment by creating two payment options that became effective this year.

If veterans who need abdominal aortic aneurysm surgery are fully versed in both open and endovascular procedures, will they be happier with their choice?  

To prevent “buyers’ remorse,” a new study at Veteran Administration centers is examining if decision aids can help align patient preference with the type of AAA surgery. Enrollment begins at 20 VA centers in April.

PROVE-AAA – PReference for Open Versus Endovascular AAA Repair – has received $1.1 million in funding from the VA’s Health Services Research and Development branch.