STS News - Spring 2019

The Society is offering a new opportunity for self-assessment and quality improvement in cardiothoracic surgery—surgeon-specific outcomes reports from the Adult Cardiac Surgery Database (ACSD). For those who opt in, these reports will be available beginning in fall 2019 and will include data on coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG), aortic valve replacement (AVR), CABG+AVR, mitral valve repair and replacement (MVRR), and CABG+MVRR.

New STS officers and directors were elected during the Annual Membership (Business) Meeting on Monday, January 28, at the 55th Annual Meeting in San Diego.

I am honored to have been elected this year as the Society’s 55th President. Words are inadequate to express my appreciation for all of the support I have received from former partners and trainees, mentors, and colleagues. In my career, this certainly is a capstone accomplishment that warrants pride and appreciation for the opportunities to serve STS members.

Good surgical skills combined with a high level of team performance are key to achieving low mortality rates. In order to achieve that high performance, you need to take a systems
approach—optimizing the working environment, paying attention to equipment design and function, understanding the subtleties of decision-making in a dynamic and often fluid situation, and enhancing team communication.

STS has hired Elaine Weiss, JD as its Chief Executive Officer/Executive Director effective April 15, 2019. She replaces Robert A. Wynbrandt, JD, who retired on March 15 after more than 30 years with the Society—17 years as Executive Director & General Counsel and 15 years as outside legal counsel before STS became a self-managed organization in 2002.

The Thoracic Surgery Foundation (TSF) distributed 24 grants totaling $916,500 as part of its 2019 awards program supporting research, education, and surgical volunteerism in cardiothoracic surgery. These grants will help advance treatment options for patients with heart, lung, and other chest diseases and offer much-needed assistance to underserved patients.

Find the latest updates on STS member job changes and promotions.

Read about individual and societal awards, as well as where STS leaders have made appearances.

Read a recap of the Presidential Address by Keith S. Naunheim, MD, check out the award winners, and see photos from the STS 55th Annual Meeting in San Diego, January 27–29, 2019.

Rob Headrick, MD, MBA was inspired to make the leap from the operating room to Capitol Hill so that he could advocate for change that would benefit cardiothoracic surgeons and their patients.