From the President, Dr. Marc S. Rubin

It is a truly great honor for me to serve as the 93rd President of the Boston Surgical Society. For over a century The BSS has been the pre-eminent collegial gathering place for surgeons in the region and has continuously presented outstanding scholarly and topical lectures relating to the science, art and history of Surgery. I vividly recall being invited to attend BSS meetings with my mentors as a young resident in the 1980s. I was introduced to many accomplished surgeons, dined with Department Chairs and textbook authors in the grandeur of Harvard Hall and listened to the wisdom and musings of many brilliant and nationally prominent speakers. It was at the BSS that my Department Chair introduced me to my future fellowship program director and also where I met my future partners. Even more memorably, I attended the Boston Surgical Society’s awarding of the Bigelow Medal – the most prestigious award in American Surgery – to Nobel laureate Joseph Murray MD in 1990. The BSS is one of those special advantages those of us who practice in the area have – and the social gatherings and dinner meetings are something every Boston area surgeon should experience.

The 2023 year at the BSS season started with three outstanding meetings. In February, colorectal surgeons from BIDMC, BWH, Lahey Clinic, MGH, Tufts and U Mass participated in “The BSS Debates on the Management of Colorectal Emergencies”. Some great clinical pearls were shared between good natured barbs and banter among the outstanding colorectal talent we have here in Boston. In March Dr. Geeta Lal from the University of Iowa spoke about ergonomics for surgeons and what we can all do to protect ourselves from injury. She was joined by Evan Welch, a medical disability insurance expert who gave a great overview of how to navigate the disability insurance products to make sure we, as surgeons, can make sure we are protected. In April at the annual “Case of the Year Competition” the resident presentation from Boston Medical Center by Priyanka Chugh took top honors.  Alexander Yu from Lahey Clinic and Isaac Gendelman from Tufts were a close 2nd and 3rd. Finally, the annual Tripartite Northeast Surgical meeting with the New York Surgical Society and the Philadelphia Academy of Surgery was held in New York on April 28th. The Boston contingent, which included two residents (Megan Sulciner from BWH and Carolina Perez-Iglesias from BIDMC) gave several well received talks. An excellent dinner at the Penn Club followed, highlighted by a keynote address by Dr. Jeff Ponsky.

This fall the BSS schedule continues with a very special event. On November 6th at The Harvard Club we will be awarding the Bigelow Medal for the first time in 5 years to Dr. Angelita Habr-Gama of Sao Paulo Brazil. Dr. Habr-Gama initiated the research and championed the now widely accepted paradigm shift to watchful waiting for select rectal cancers. She will be the first woman and the first Latin American to receive the prestigious award! It should be a great night. The Calendar year wraps up in December with our annual business meeting and Presidential Address. I anticipate a record number of new members will be inducted at that meeting. At the conclusion of the December meeting, I will hand the gavel to Dr. Claire Cronin, the 2024 Boston Surgical Society President who is putting together another excellent year for us.

The Boston Surgical Society and its traditions are a wonderful part of being a surgeon in Boston and I am honored to be its steward for 2023. Along with the Executive Council I encourage all of you to nominate colleagues and young surgeons at your hospitals and in your practices for membership so that they too can enjoy everything that we offer. I hope to see all of you at the Bigelow Medal presentation at the Harvard Club on November 6th and for the Annual Meeting in December

 

Looking Forward,

Marc S. Rubin MD FACS, FASCRS

2023 President, Boston Surgical Society