April 2006 SAFCS President's Message This has certainly been a trying couple of years for the Society and for the Air Force Medical Service. From the loss and return of central funding, to the short meeting last August, then finally through Hurricane Katrina, the normal workings of our Society have been severely strained. Put on top of this the increased ops tempo with the deployment to Balad of the first AF combat casualty hospital since Vietnam, and things really get interesting! Despite these challenges, I still feel strongly that our Society is vital to the continued success of surgical care in the Air Force. The current ops tempo is both an opportunity and a burden. We have a chance to practice those skills we worked years to acquire, but must leave loved ones and colleagues to do so. Our society meetings have given us a chance to share ideas and get to know each other prior to deploying. My personal experience of being “Trauma Czar” for AEF 5/6 was certainly easier having met many of the fine folks I worked with (Brian Peyton, Jon Perlstein, Mike Sutherland, and many others) at prior SAFCS Symposia. We still face many challenges. The destruction and rebuilding of Keesler Medical Center, the upcoming BRAC realignments, and future deployments all need our work and input. Our SAFCS meetings give us just the forum to advance surgical care in the Air Force. We have 100 centrally funded TDY slots available for the upcoming meeting, September 15-18, and we need to use every one of them if we want to be funded in the future. Darrin Clouse and his team are working diligently to put on a great meeting. This year’s affair will be a full schedule similar to our past spring symposia, with the Knowledge Bowl, President’s Luncheon, Golf Tournament, and fun run included along with the plenary session with representatives from the Surgeon General’s Office. Participants will also have the opportunity to stay for the BAMC Trauma Symposium, which immediately follows our meeting. I hope to see you there. Finally, I would like to thank Mike Peck, Rose Thomas, and the whole team that put on the meeting last August while I was deployed. Without it, I feel we would have had a difficult time continuing our mission as the only professional society dedicated to Air Force Surgery. W. Brian Perry, Lt Col, USAF, MC 2004-2006 President, Society of Air Force Clinical Surgeons April 2005 President's Message SAFCS 2004–2006 PRESIDENT’S LETTER Lieutenant Colonel William B. Perry At the turn of the Twentieth Century, doctors began to form professional societies as a way to promote their common interests and protect themselves collectively from the problems of the day. Straight from the ACS website, “The American College of Surgeons is a scientific and educational association of surgeons that was founded in 1913 to improve the quality of care for the surgical patient by setting high standards for surgical education and practice. ”At the start of the Twenty-first Century, these same forces drive the continued need for collegial associations of surgeons with similar backgrounds, needs, and goals. The Society of Air Force Clinical Surgeons fits the bill for a select, important group that is currently the tip of the spear in our nation’s military medical response. Many of our fellow members have been or are now deployed in harms’ way to serve those who come under hostile fire. As you are now well aware, we have had to cancel our symposium scheduled for 3-7 April 2005 at the Grand Hotel in Biloxi, due to the sudden withdrawal of centrally funded TDY slots. Jerry Pratt and his team at Keesler were well underway planning an excellent meeting. The Board of Governors thought long and hard about this decision, but felt it was best to cancel now and not risk a huge loss due to decreased attendance. We have asked Lt Col Pratt to keep his position as Program Chairman and plan for the symposium to resume in April 2006. Colonels Legan, Slawinski, and our new Consultant Tom Erchinger are working the issue at the Air Staff level. Our society is not unique in this unfortunate turn of events; all other professional meetings have been denied funding as well. Despite the setbacks, I feel strongly that our Society is worth fighting for and saving. We are a unique collection of talented surgeons, standing on the shoulders of those who came before us. Many of the advances in the way we deploy – MFST, CCATT, SPEARR, EMEDS - came directly from Society members working at the symposium. Without the Society as a framework, we become islands of surgeons completing our various commitments without ever getting to know those around us in the Air Force. As our ops-tempo increases, we will be deploying with fellow surgeons from all over the country and around the world. It’s certainly easier when you have met your counterparts previously. It is also imperative that we have a forum to compare experiences and talk constructively about a better way to do business, lest we be doomed to continuously repeat the same mistakes over and over again. The Society also gives us a channel to the Air Staff about what’s happening in the real world. We are actively pursuing ways to make the Society less dependant on central funding for our continued existence. The real issues are how to get the majority of surgeons to join and how to put “butts in the seats” at the annual meeting (As a colorectal surgeon I can say that professionally). All members will need to explore new ways to procure local funding to attend the symposium. There may be alternatives to going to our commands hat in hand and asking for more travel money. Third party collections are coming on line; a portion could be set aside for Air Force meetings. Participation in multi-center, industry sponsored research is another way to get TDY money outside of MTF’s. We are also exploring direct educational grants from a number of angles, as well as alumni sponsorships. I strongly encourage all members to talk to your cloverleaves and harass/cajole/bully/persuade them to join. Mark Gunst is working on a Society brochure to help in this effort. Program Directors need to make it part of the routine for all incoming residents that they join – it’s free for interns and cheap for the rest of the residents. We also need to actively pursue those residents and fellows in deferred status. Our future is in your hands. The SAFCS has now more than fifty years of service to Air Force Surgeons – let’s make sure it’s around for another fifty! 2009-2010 SAFCS President's Message 2008-2009 SAFCS President's Message 2006-2008 SAFCS President's Message 2003-2004 SAFCS President's Message 2002-2003 SAFCS President's Message 2001-2002 SAFCS President's Message 2000-2001 SAFCS President's Message