May 2020

Dr. Raghu Kolluri

PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE

Dear colleagues,

Virtual clinics, teleconferences, PPEs, and self-quarantines have become the new normal. As we all adjust to this new normal, my thoughts are with you and your families. I hope you're staying safe and healthy. The last several weeks have been emotional for all of us, but I continue to be inspired by the genuine acts of kindness, large and small. Special thanks to our colleagues on the frontlines of COVID, particularly those in New York City and the other hot spots, which took most of the brunt of this pandemic.

At SVM, we have faced some challenges which we had never expected to encounter. But again, I am glad to report that we have been successful in working through them. We successfully managed to transition from the live Annual Scientific Sessions in Denver to a virtual format. Dr. Herb Aronow and his team are working tirelessly to bring you the best possible digital experience.

I request you to save the date and time for the SVM annual Business Meeting that will be held virtually on June 12, 2:00 - 3:00 p.m ET. You should be receiving an invite to join the meeting. Dr. Heather Gornik and her Nomination Committee have a new slate of nominees to the Board that needs approval by the membership. So, I welcome you to join us for the business meeting, to hear about the State-of-SVM, and to approve these nominees.

Dr. Elizabeth Ratchford and her team’s SVM membership bolstering strategies did not stop during this pandemic. The SVM Mentor-Mentee program was developed under the collaboration of the Membership Committee and the NextGen Committee. Read below about one such example of how this program is already helping our SVM rising stars. I encourage others to take advantage of this Program.

As we adapt to the new future, we will need to rely on online/on demand education, at least for the near term. Dr. Ido Weinberg, apart from being the treasurer for our society, has taken on the additional task of adding online vascular education to our portfolio. He is spearheading our vascular education efforts in collaboration with Drs. Aditya Sharma, Greg Piazza, and Dr. Parmar. These include Board Review course material, Vascular Medicine Clinical Practice pearls, and access to local Vascular Medicine grand rounds/journal clubs.

Dr. Bruce Gray and the American Board of Vascular Medicine team have also been quite busy. Please read about some major developments with ABVM below.

Apart from caring for our patients, SVMers have helped to make our society stronger. These gestures of strength and caring give me the confidence that in time, SVM will emerge stronger.

As several states start opening up for business, I hope you and your family remain safe and healthy.

Best regards,

Raghu Kolluri, MD, RVT, FSVM

TAKE NOTE! SVM LEADERSHIP ELECTIONS

The Society for Vascular Medicine Annual Business Meeting will be virtual this year on Friday, June 12, 2:00 - 3:00 pm ET. All SVM members are invited to attend. If you have yet to renew your membership, please do so that you can attend this meeting and vote for our future leaders. During this meeting, voting members will elect incoming SVM Trustees. Call-in details will be shared in advance of the June 12 meeting.

Slate of Nominees for the SVM Board of Trustees

Trustee-at-Large: Esther Soo Hyun Kim, MD, MPH, RPVI, FSVM (2nd Term)
Trustee-at-Large: Mitchell J. Silver, DO, FSVM (2nd Term)
Trustee-at-Large: Mitchell D. Weinberg, MD, MBA, FSVM (1st Term)

The following officers were elected for two-year terms at last year’s Annual Business meeting:

President: Raghu Kolluri, MD, RVT, FSVM
President-Elect: Herb Aronow, MD, MPH, FSVM
Past President: Heather Gornik, MD, RVT, RPVI, FSVM
Treasurer: Ido Weinberg, MD, MSc, MHA, FSVM
Secretary: Elizabeth Ratchford, MD, FSVM

Dr. Esther Soo Hyun Kim

Esther Soo Hyun Kim, MD, MPH, RPVI, FSVM

Dr. Mitchell J. Silver

Mitchell J. Silver, DO, FSVM

Dr. Mitchell D. Weinberg

Mitchell D. Weinberg, MD, MBA, FSVM

SVM ANNUAL MEETING UPDATE

SAVE THE DATE for SVM’s Virtual Annual Scientific Meeting, which will take place Saturday, September 12, 2020.

Additional information will be forthcoming as the meeting agenda crystalizes.

MENTOR OF THE MONTH: DR. KAMAL GUPTA

The SVM Mentorship Program was launched in January 2020, with the goal of supporting the professional development of our early-career SVM members. More than 50 SVM members joined the inaugural mentor/mentee class.

Dr. Kamal Gupta has been selected as the Mentor of the Month. Dr. Gupta is the Director of Vascular Medicine at Kansas University Medical Center and is a Professor of Medicine-Cardiology. His mentee is Dr. Saeed Payvar.

Dr. Payvar writes,

“I am writing to thank you for initiating the SVM Mentorship Program and to thank you specifically for giving me the privilege of having Dr. Kamal Gupta as a mentor. This connection has been very helpful for me. Dr. Gupta and I have exchanged several emails, text message, and phone calls. I have benefitted from his guidance when we have reviewed cases together. The most impressive and meaningful interaction was when I reached out to him for his thoughts on the care of a patient of mine. He immediately responded; he was generous with his time during multiple communications and phone calls as we reviewed the care options. He always remained calm, kind, and thoughtful. I implemented the plan that we chose through his guidance, and the patient did very well. What impressed me the most was how humble he is, which is just wonderful.”

Hats off to Dr. Gupta for his excellent mentorship, and thank you to Dr. Payvar for sharing the experience. It’s great to hear good news. Click here for more information about the SVM Mentorship Program or to sign up. And please let us know if you would like to nominate your mentor or mentee to be featured in our newsletter.

APCA and ABVM

From a Letter to the Editor May 8, 2020

It is with great excitement that we announce the acquisition of the American Board of Vascular Medicine by Inteleos, Inc. Inteleos is an international certification organization that currently provides high stakes examinations for the medical community (see Table). Their Alliance for Physician Certification & Advancement (APCA) counsel will oversee both the general and endovascular examinations 2020-2021. The recertification process will be revamped from a high stakes examination to longitudinal assessments for continual learning.

This is an exciting time for vascular medicine. New funding of VM training programs will fuel growth in the number of practitioners. The research capabilities of these programs will further enhance our body of knowledge. The expansion of our diagnostic capabilities through ultrasonic, computed tomographic, phlethysmographic, and thermographic techniques will bring less studied diseases into focus. These advances will ultimately be seen in novel drugs and treatments for various arterial and venous maladies. Our certification examination must keep pace with these developments to showcase our profession.

Vascular medicine is an international field. And through collaboration with our international partners, we anticipate expansion and growth. This synergism will broaden our impact on patients and the care they receive.

Additional information will be forthcoming either through the ABVM website or the APCA website.

Indeed, this is an exciting time to be in vascular medicine.

On behalf of the ABVM board,

Bruce Gray, DO MSVM

Table: Alliance for physician certification & advancement (APCA) member boards

APCA Board and abbreviation

Certification Board of Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance (CBCMR)
Musculoskeletal ultrasound examination for physicians (MSK)
Physicians Vascular Interpretation (PVI)
Point-of-care Ultrasound Academy (POTUS)
Certification Board of Cardiovascular Computed Tomography (CBCCT)
Certification Board of Nuclear Cardiology (CBNC)

SHARE YOUR ONLINE EDUCATION SCHEDULE

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, several institutions have elected to transition to online teaching conferences and journal clubs. This creates a unique opportunity for fellows and staff alike for institutional collaboration and learning. We would like to invite the SVM community to share their online educational schedules and to open them to attendance by their SVM colleagues and friends (via Zoom or similar platforms). Anyone with a spare half-hour and a desire to learn can join and listen to their peers.

All information shared during these lectures should be patient de-identified for HIPAA concerns.

Click the link below to submit your institution’s lecture series information and meeting invitation:

Lecture Information Submission

Click the link below to view weekly lecture viewing opportunities (Will be updated regularly):

Updated Weekly Educational Events

COVID-19

COVID-19 RESOURCES

In case you missed our email, we wanted to make sure you had these helpful resources.

SVM leadership shares lessons learned from their institutions in "SVM Leadership Responds to the COVID-19 Crisis" from Vascular Medicine.

You can find this article, along with resources curated for vascular medicine professionals, on the SVM website. You'll also find subspecialty societal resources, anticoagulation resources, vascular laboratory resources and more.

SVM extends a huge thanks to Dr. Natalia Fendrikova Mahlay and Dr. Michael Tran, both of Cleveland Clinic, for compiling this information.

CAREER CENTER

Are you looking to change jobs or begin your career in vascular medicine? Visit SVM's Career Center for the latest job offerings around the world.

View the job list.

FROM VASCULAR MEDICINE

Please note: Due to COVID-19, we are anticipating some delays in the shipping/delivery of print journals to the US. For those of you that receive the print journal, the April and June issues may be delayed. The April edition is available online and can be accessed with your member log-in.

Vascular Medicine is SVM's premier peer-reviewed journal, featuring the latest clinical and scientific information in vascular medicine. Heather Gornik, MD, FSVM, of the Vascular Center at University Hospitals Harrington Heart & Vascular Institute, serves as Editor-in-Chief and many senior SVM members serve on the Editorial Board. Learn more about Vascular Medicine and CME opportunities for SVM Members. Follow the journal on Twitter at @VMJ_SVM.