Home >Newsletters >June 1997
 
ASA NEWSLETTER
 
 
June 1997
Volume 61
Number 6
 
ASA NEWS

Boston Workshop to Focus on Bioethical Issues

The ASA Workshop on Practical Bioethics for the Anesthesiologist will address issues such as, "How do I appropriately honor a patient's request not to be resuscitated in the operating room?" This program will be held on July 19-20, 1997 at the Westin Hotel Copley Place in Boston, Massachusetts.

Ethical dilemmas run through the practice of anesthesiology. The workshop will also address these questions: How do I fulfill my obligation to obtain informed consent when I only meet the patient a few minutes before surgery? Where can I get help when I have a problem?

This program will equip the participant with a foundation to recognize and untangle current and future ethical quandaries. The faculty will provide practical advice to make resolving these dilemmas easier. Ample time will be allowed for questions.

David B. Waisel, M.D. is the program chair. He will speak on "What Bioethics Can Do for You" and "Do Business Ethics Count in Anesthesiology?" The other faculty and their topics are:

  • Susan K. Palmer, M.D., "Ethical Concerns in Obstetric Anesthesia" and "Ethical Issues in Quality Improvement";
  • David M. Rothenberg, M.D., "Ethical Anesthetic Management of the Jehovah's Witness" and "An Anesthesiologist's Perspective on Physician-Assisted Death";
  • Robert D. Truog, M.D., "A Pragmatic Approach for DNR in the O.R." and "The Oracle of Apollo at Delphi: The Ethics Consultation";
  • Gail A. Van Norman, M.D., "(Mis)Informed Consent: An Ethical Problem in the Operating Room?" and "Brain Dead, or Only Mostly Dead - What's the Difference, I'm Just the Anesthesiologist!"

The faculty will also lead a "Morbidity and Mortality Conference: Help the Panel With Their Most Difficult Cases or Stump Them With Yours."

ASA is approved by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) to sponsor continuing medical education programs for physicians.

ASA designates this continuing medical education program for 12 credit hours in category 1 of the Physician's Recognition Award of the American Medical Association.

Registration is suggested by June 19, 1997. Registration fees are $200 for ASA active members, $100 for resident members and $550 for nonmembers.

A block of rooms is being held at the Westin Hotel Copley Place until June 27, 1997. A room reservation form will be sent to registrants upon receipt of registration. The form should be returned to the hotel by the above date.



ASA Web Stats:
And the Hits Just Keep on Coming!

ASA continues to keep statistics on the number of "hits," or visits that the ASA Web site receives. We have compiled a list of the top five hits for the month of April as well as a running total for the period of January 1 through April 30:

Page

April Total Running Total
ASA Home Page
3,905
18,448
 
Standards and Guidelines
(total all pages)
 
2,301
 
9,888
Physician Information Page
1,966
9,093
What's New
784
3,793
Patient Education
638
3,018

These statistics give just some of the information that ASA has compiled regarding the ASA Web site. Here are some other interesting facts: During the period of January 1 through March 31, the ASA Web site had hits from 75 countries. The country outside the United States with the greatest number of hits was Japan with 3,432.

Where are they coming from? The greatest number of hits came from commercial sites (.com) with a total of 50,875 hits. There also were visits from educational sites (.edu) with 33,211 hits, organization sites (.org) with 4,465 hits, and government sites (.gov) with 803 hits.


Denver Workshop on Anesthesiologists as O.R. Managers

Leadership skills for O.R. management, identifying problems using available information and problem-solving using specifically targeted data will be discussed at an ASA program this summer. The Workshop on Anesthesiologists as Operating Room Managers will be held on August 9-10, 1997 at the Westin Hotel Tabor Center in Denver, Colorado.

The faculty will provide effective management strategies for efficient running of the operating room, effective utilization of operating rooms, cost reductions in the perioperative area and operating room scheduling.

Vinod Malhotra, M.D. is the program chair. He will speak on "O.R. Management: An Overview - Why Us? What Are the Problems? What Are Effective Solutions?" and "Truth in O.R. Scheduling." Other speakers and their topics are:

  • Charles J. Kopriva, M.D., "Preparing for an O.R. Budget Cut," "Data Management and Measures of Efficiency, " "Efficiency and Utilization in the Operating Room" and "Efficient Perioperative Care Improves O.R. Efficiency";
  • William J. Mazzei, M.D., "How Did We Get Into This Mess? How Do We Turn It Around?", "O.R. and Procedural Time Definitions" and "Truth in O.R. Scheduling";
  • Charles H. McLeskey, M.D., "Preparing for an O.R. Budget Cut," "The March of Managed Care: An O.R. Manager's Nightmare" and "Pharmaco-Economics in the Perioperative Period";
  • Denham S. Ward, M.D., Ph.D., "How to Take a Leadership Role," "Data Management and Measures of Efficiency" and "Cost-Reduction Strategies for the Operating Room."

ASA is approved by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) to sponsor continuing medical education programs for physicians.

ASA designates this continuing medical education program for 11 credit hours in category 1 of the Physician's Recognition Award of the American Medical Association.

Registration fees are $200 for active members, $100 for resident members and $550 for nonmembers. Registration is encouraged by July 8, 1997.

A block of rooms has been reserved at the Westin Hotel Tabor Center, which is in downtown Denver. A reservation form will be sent upon registration for the meeting. The form should be returned directly to the hotel by July 18, 1997.



In-Training Examinations Available

John R. Ammon, M.D., Chair of the ABA-ASA Joint Council on In-Training Examinations, has approved the release for sale of the 1987 and 1988 ABA-ASA In-Training Examinations. Each examination contains 350 multiple choice questions, although the answer key for the examination is not included.

The 1987 and 1988 examinations are available at a cost of $20 each and requests and payments should be forwarded to: ASA Publications Department, 520 N. Northwest Highway, Park Ridge, IL 60068-2573.

 


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