Joseph J. Disa,
MD, FACS
NESPS President
Happy New Year and best wishes to all in 2011. Winter has arrived in the Northeast, and we have already dealt with our first Nor’easter. New York City was particularly interesting in the days subsequent to the storm. Everything from cars to police and emergency vehicles were abandoned in the middle of streets, intersections, and expressways. Accordion buses were vented 90 degrees around corners of intersections with no place to go, and side streets were blocked for days. The warming trend that came in the days following the mess allowed the city to clear and become passable again. The brief stent of warm air was a reminder of our upcoming annual meeting in October 2011, in a much more pleasant and desirable climate. The venue will be the Ritz Carlton Resort in Amelia Island, Florida.
Coming off the heels of an outstanding annual meeting in Washington, DC under the direction of our past president Donald Mackay and his program committee chaired by Shane Johnson and Babak Mehrara, there was an all time record in the number of abstract submissions. The meeting highlighted a new innovation, namely, the American Board of Plastic Surgery approved MOC courses. The post meeting surveys demonstrated that the membership and guests of the NESPS very much enjoyed the scientific program, the invited lectures, and in particularly, the opportunity to fulfill MOC requirements. It is a particular honor to our society that this was the first time MOC courses were available at a regional society meeting.
The upcoming 2011 meeting promises to be just as exciting with the continuation, and planned expansion of the MOC course program. On a special note, we are planning a pre-meeting aesthetics symposium which will take place on Thursday afternoon prior to the opening reception and the Northeastern Society of Plastic Surgery leadership has secured Dr. David Hidalgo to give the Eugene Courtiss Memorial Lecture. The scientific program committee will be chaired by Babak Mehrara and Peter Taub, and I am certain they will not disappoint. As this is a resort venue, adequate time will be built in for social activities, so everyone is encouraged to come with their significant others and families.
The economy is beginning to improve and our society, under the financial guidance of our treasurer John Girotto and the rest of the Board of Directors, has weathered the storm. The Second Decade Fund created by Bill Little, was a great asset for the NESPS during these recent economic challenges. During the 2010 Annual Meeting, Dr. Mackay and Dr. Bucky stimulated a new push to reinvigorate the Second Decade Fund. I encourage everyone to contribute to the benefit of our organization, and to allow us to provide the highest quality scientific and educational forum for our members.
The NESPS continues to work under the administrative guidance of Donna Gurnett, EJ Weldon, and Rebecca Bonsaint from PRRI. Behind the scenes, they are constantly negotiating with our vendors and our meeting venues to provide the best possible product at the lowest possible price.
I encourage you to visit the society web site, www.NESPS.org, where you will find information regarding the upcoming annual meeting, an ability to submit abstracts electronically, and an easy mechanism to pay your annual dues. I also encourage members of our society to use the web site to easily nominate new members. A special acknowledgement goes out to Jeffery Ascherman and his Membership Committee, for generating substantial growth in the NESPS. Members of the Northeastern Society that wish to be involved on one of our committees, should reach out to Donna, Becky, EJ, or any member of the board of directors and we can guide you in the right direction. The Board of Directors and I would like to thank each and every member of the Northeastern Society of Plastic Surgery for their support. We all realize that without a healthy, active and interested membership, our society could not exist. I thank you all for the honor of serving as your president, and I look forward to providing an outstanding meeting in 2011.
Sincerely
Joseph J. Disa, MD, FACS
Attending Surgeon, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery Service
Professor of Surgery, Weill Medical College of Cornell University