Source: Kyle Klein
The fourth annual meeting of the Society of Asian Academic Surgeons will be held in Boston, Massachusetts, Sept. 26-27, 2019, and promises to be an incredibly fun, impactful and meaningful gathering of academic surgeons, trainees and students from both the U.S. and abroad.
Source: Greater Boston Convention & Visitors Bureau
The meeting will be hosted by Dr. Jennifer Tseng, the James Utley Professor and Chair of the Department of Surgery at Boston University School of Medicine.
Boston Medical Center has a rich history dating back to its time as the original Boston City Hospital, the first municipal hospital in the U.S. Maintaining its roots as the healthcare center for South Boston, BMC remains the largest safety-net hospital and Level I trauma center in New England.
This year’s program features 148 accepted abstracts on a wide range of topics, such as the use of mobile technology to track patient recovery after cancer surgery (Dr. Nikhil Panda of Massachusetts General Hospital) and the impact of older patients not returning home after surgery (Dr. Lindsey Zhang of University of Chicago). The top five institutions with the most accepted abstracts this year were Massachusetts General Hospital, National Taiwan University, the University of Alabama Birmingham, the Medical College of Wisconsin and Brigham and Women’s Hospital.
Source: Kyle Klein
In addition to the fantastic scientific presentations, Thursday’s interactive workshop this year is a special professional development session by Professor Kevin Mohan, who teaches “Negotiation and Deals” in the MBA program at Harvard Business School and serves as senior advisor at Summit Partners, a $15-billion venture capital and private equity firm. The session will be focused on discussing negotiation topics relevant to doctors and to provide attendees with simulations of live negotiations. This is a can’t-miss workshop with a leading international expert on business negotiation – a crucial skill for any physician.
A highlight of any SAAS meeting is the opportunity to mingle and connect with fellow SAAS members and attendees. This year’s program will feature a welcome reception at Anoush’ella that will be co-hosted by the Latino Surgical Society. The LSS is a young and new surgical society with an incredibly talented group of leaders and members. The collaboration between LSS and SAAS is an exciting opportunity for both young surgical societies, who are dedicated to the advancement of all academic surgeons. Also, you will not want to miss the closing soiree hosted by Dr. Tseng at her home!
Thanks to the incredible generosity of Dr. Yuman Fong, this year will also feature a newly endowed annual lecture named after Dr. Fong’s parents, the Kui and Wai Fong Lectureship.The lectureship was established to honor all parents who have supported the success of academic surgeons. The inaugural speaker will be transplant surgical pioneer Dr. John Fung from the University of Chicago.
Source: Kyle Klein
The annual Kuo Family Lecturer this year will be Joanne Chang, a James Beard Foundation Award-winning chef and a Boston treasure for her delectable sweets from Flour Bakery. While Chang was originally planning to attend business school, her talents as a baker led her to instead seek work as a chef at various Boston restaurants, including a stint at the acclaimed French restaurant Mistral, before establishing the first Flour Bakery in 2000 – just steps away from BMC. Bostonians have since had an ongoing love affair with Flour’s sticky buns, cakes and other treats, and Flour now has eight locations around the Boston area.
On the topic of food and other events, Boston is home to a number of fantastic restaurants covering a multitude of cuisines. Consider staying in Boston for the weekend to check out the sights, sounds and flavors of Boston.
If you haven’t been to the SAAS meeting, make this your first (of many)!
Story Author: Daniel A. Hashimoto, MD, MS
Story Contributors: Daniel Chu, MD, and Zhi Ven Fong, MD, DrPH