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NewsletterPresident's MessageThe opportunity to communicate with the membership of SCA through regular Newsletter messages is one of the SCA President's greatest privileges. In my first message to you, I would like to reflect on what SCA has achieved in the nineties and offer you some thoughts on what may lie ahead in SCA's future. In this decade, as in its earlier years, the Society has been blessed with outstanding leadership. From Earl Wynands, who brought us into the decade, to Rick Davis, who guided us to its end, each of the Society's presidents has contributed enormously to SCA's growth as a mature and respected organization. What is even more impressive is that such progress took place while the society renewed itself every two years by electing new officers. Because of this renewal, SCA's major achievements can seldom be attributed to one individual, solely. The new officers adopt and complete initiatives that were begun by a previous Board of Directors, as illustrated in the following examples. When Earl Wynands was SCA President, the issue of an SCA journal became acute. Although this same topic had been visited several times previously, the sudden availability of new options lent a certain degree of urgency to the matter. As a result, Dr. Wynands initiated complicated negotiations with several potential partners. They continued while John Waller was President, but closure with the International Anesthesia Research Society was delayed until Alan J. Schwartz became President. Despite the change in leadership, the society's objectives were well-defined, they were pursued with consistency and the final outcome was never in doubt. A similar pattern can be described for several other major SCA initiatives. In 1991, John Waller realized that the very prudent investment strategy that SCA had followed since its inception was too conservative to permit significant growth in the society's endowment. Skilled professional assistance was elicited and the Board of Directors' initial reluctance to a more aggressive investment strategy was gradually overcome. The investment principles that were adopted under Dr. Waller, have been followed by every successive Board of Directors. As a result, and with the kind assistance of Wall Street, the SCA's endowment has risen from a few hundred thousand dollars to over three million dollars. The increased endowment allows the society to fund its educational and research activities more generously. The ultimate goal, however, is to have a large enough endowment to make admission to the Annual Meeting a complimentary membership benefit. While we are not there yet, we are considerably closer to that goal, today, than we were in 1991. The certification process for perioperative transesophageal echocardi-ography was begun when Mike Roizen was SCA President. He appointed the SCA Task Force that developed the Perioperative Transesophageal Echocardiography examination. Nearly simultaneously, SCA leadership began discussions with ASEXAM, Inc., the organization that sponsors the general examination in echocardiography, with the intent of consolidating the two examination processes. The negotiations were difficult and prolonged, but they were eventually brought to conclusion by Rick Davis. The creation of the National Board of Echocardiography, with a fixed representation of anesthesiologists on its Board of Directors, ensures that the voice of cardiothoracic anesthesiology will be heard in all matters related to certification in echocardiography. Here again, the hurdles were tall, but the society had a clear vision of its goals and what one individual began, another completed. As the new millennium approaches, a few large projects, that were begun under Rick Davis' leadership, loom on the horizon. The process to achieve ACGME accreditation of subspecialty training programs is now well underway. The task force headed by two former SCA Presidents, Jerry Reeves and Alan J. Schwartz, is presently compiling a draft version of the documents that will eventually be submitted to the Anesthesia Residency Review Committee for action. Once the drafts have been reviewed by the Board of Directors, they will be widely disseminated to the SCA membership for input and comments. While it may be obvious for some that the subspecialty of cardiothoracic anesthesia is best served by formalizing the training of new practitioners, it is only with broad support from SCA members that ACGME approval will be obtained. With the introduction of the SCA website (www.SCAhq.org), the Society has launched itself into the electronic age. Quite clearly, this is just a beginning and the possibilities offered by cyberspace are endless. One can easily imagine that, in the future, most of the Society's business transactions will be conducted on the Internet. One can even imagine that, one day, the same will be true for most of SCA's educational activities. For now, however, the Society is probably best served if this new medium is approached in a careful, systematic and thoughtful manner. Here again, SCA leadership welcomes input from all members and I welcome your thoughts and comments at sca@societyhq.com. Another major project for the near future is to broaden the Society's international appeal. As one of our members from South America mentioned to me at the 1999 Annual Meeting, the beacon in SCA's logo shines brightly around the world. Yet, our membership has been static for a number of years and our annual meetings have seen little growth in their attendance. At Chris Mora-Mangano's suggestion, plenary sessions at the 2000 Annual Meeting in Orlando will benefit from simultaneous Spanish translation. Luis Michelsen and colleagues will offer a one-day transesophageal echocardiography workshop in Spanish. Other initiatives to increase SCA's membership roster will be developed by the Membership committee under Martin London's leadership. Finally, the Board of Directors would be remiss in its duties if it did not consider the long-term future of SCA in a rapidly changing environment. At the next winter meeting of the Board, a strategic planning session will be held with the help of a professional facilitator. It will hopefully lead to some very specific recommendations for future development. For nearly twenty years I have enjoyed my association with SCA because it provided me with outstanding educational offerings, wonderful professional interactions and a strong sense of belonging. It is the Board of Directors' responsibility to ensure that SCA will offer the same gratification to those who, today, are at the beginning of their professional career.
Daniel M. Thys, M.D. President, SCA
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