Welcome Letters
INTERNATIONAL COLLEGE OF SURGEONS
WORLD PRESIDENT
As the International College of Surgeons World President, it is my pleasure and privilege to welcome you to the 84th Annual Surgical Update of the United States Section of the International College of Surgeons. I commend the United States Section leadership for organizing this surgical update, which I am certain will be informative and helpful in staying abreast of rapid developments in our profession. The core mission of the International College of Surgeons is humanitarian surgery. Four supporting missions are education, communications, presentation of research data, and leadership. All of these missions are being addressed in this 84th Annual Surgical Update.
The scientific program is excellent and includes presentations on Humanitarian Surgery, a discussion on the Annual Ethics Forum, Neurological and Orthopaedic surgery, and Colorectal Surgery. Throughout these presentations, the focus will continue to be to raise the standards for safe surgery around the world, while at the same time addressing the unmet humanitarian needs of millions of people.
We must also strive to achieve sustainability in all global humanitarian settings of surgery. We must assume the responsibility of training local persons to capably carry on the work of the visiting humanitarian surgical teams. As Dr. Max Thorek so clearly indicated, we must be teachers and students, all at one and the same time. And we must also significantly collaborate with other entities. “we must work together” like never before this time. And that is what this surgical update is all about.
I give you my best wishes for a very productive and enjoyable meeting with the hope that you will have the time to enjoy the wonderful city of San Antonio, Texas!
Sincerely,
Professor Aij-Lie Kwan
World President
International College of Surgeons
INTERNATIONAL COLLEGE OF SURGEONS
UNITED STATES SECTION
PRESIDENT
I am extremely delighted to welcome you to the 84th Annual Surgical Update of the United States Section of the International College of Surgeons. We are gathering here in San Antonio to participate in this annual meeting of surgeons and surgical specialists. Our conference includes scientific presentations that encompass a variety of specialties. This educational activity will provide informative data for the general surgeon as well as specialists, providing both multidisciplinary and specialty specific educational content.
We are once again joined by the American Academy of Neurological and Orthopaedic Surgeons. The Academy will conduct their 46th Annual Scientific Meeting on Friday and Saturday. On behalf of all the Fellows of International College of Surgeons I extend a warm welcome to Dr. Zamorano and our AANOS colleagues, wishing them great success during their program.
As you review the provided meeting details, you will note that we have formulated a top notch scientific program. You will hear from experienced educators from around the world as they tell us about their respective projects, research and experiences. I am extremely pleased that we are joined by our ICS World Corporate Secretary from Singapore, Dr. Clement Chan. He will make a presentation during the Opening Session on Thursday afternoon. We are very grateful that he is able to join us. Other ICS Fellows are also scheduled to join us from Indonesia and the Czech Republic. I hope everyone can make it to San Antonio safely.
On a final note, I encourage everyone to attend the Honors Luncheon on Friday. During this break from educational programming we will welcome our newest members and recognize those who have made significant contributions to our esteemed organization, with a special tribute to our Past Presidents. I look forward to seeing you there. I hope you are able enjoy our excellent host city during Friday evening which we have left free for this particular purpose.
There is much to do and I encourage you to take advantage of every opportunity.
Welcome to San Antonio, home of the Alamo!
Dixon Santana, MD, FICS
President, United States Section
International College of Surgeons
THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF NEUROLOGICAL AND ORTHOPAEDIC SURGEONS
CHAIR OF THE BOARD
Dear Colleagues:
It is my privilege to welcome you to the 46th Annual Scientific Meeting of the American Academy of Neurological and Orthopaedic Surgeons. We are gathered here at the Hilton Palacio Del Rio for our annual educational program.
Our conference will provide information on a variety of Neurological, Orthopaedic and Spine related topics and I encourage you to review the information available on the meeting APP to learn all about the various speakers and their presentations. I am delighted that in this year’s program will include a number of speakers from San Antonio and the surrounding area. Joining us from UT San Antonio will be Prof. Cristian Gragnaniello, who will present Modern Management Strategies in Thoraco-Lumbar Trauma on Saturday morning. In addition, invited guest speakers, Drs. Jon-Cecil Walkes from Houston and Steven Cyr from San Antonio will contribute two fascinating lectures on Friday morning.
I am pleased that the International College of Surgeons, as our educational partner, has worked closely with our Scientific Organizing Committee to develop additional programming that is likely to be of interest to all surgical specialties. I encourage every member of the Academy to peruse the program and participate in as many sessions as possible to earn the maximum number of CME credits.
I hope you have a most enjoyable visit to the home of the Alamo during our annual meeting!
Lucia Zamorano, MD, FICS, FAANOS
Chair, American Academy of Neurological and Orthopaedic Surgeons