July 1997
Volume 61 |
Number 7
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| Scientific and
Educational Exhibits Reflect Changes in Anesthesiology Practice |
Andranik Ovassapian, M.D., Chair
Committee on Scientific and Educational Exhibits
Registrants at the 1997 ASA Annual Meeting in San Diego are invited
to visit the Scientific and Educational Exhibits that will be
displayed in a designated area of the Exhibit Hall. A wide range
of practical, educational and scientific displays will be presented.
The 11-member Committee on Scientific and Educational Exhibits
has carefully evaluated blinded copies of all the exhibit applications
submitted. Originality, scientific merit and clinical relevance
were among the criteria applied in the selection process. A total
of 37 exhibits have been selected for display. On Monday morning,
October 20, the committee members will visit and grade all exhibits;
the best exhibit will be awarded first prize, and other winning
entries will receive honorable mention.
In addition to the scientific exhibits, 13 exhibits will be presented
by various professional, educational and medical organizations
with information about the goals, objectives, activities, achievements
and contributions of those organizations, including the Society
for Airway Management and the Office-Based Anesthesia Society,
both recently organized societies of intense interest to anesthesiologists.
An exhibit on office-based anesthesia and "old" anesthesia
practice, newly resurrected in response to health care economic
pressures, shall present the goals and cost-effectiveness of this
practice.
Several other exhibits cover regional anesthesia and pain management.
An overview of new developments and techniques of nerve blocks
in the surgical and pain management area will be presented.
An exhibit about ultra-rapid opioid detoxification represents
a new frontier for anesthesiology. This new technique involves
the use of general anesthesia in an intensive care setting utilizing
rapid detoxification. The administration of general anesthesia
outside of the operating room as a therapeutic intervention expands
the role of the anesthesiologist in patient management and adds
value to the hospital practice of the specialty.
The perioperative role of the anesthesiologist for a more effective
evaluation of the surgical patient is addressed in four different
exhibits. Cost-containment in anesthesia is also highlighted by
two exhibits. A computer software program that addresses cost-containment
and outcome improvement provides a timely and informative program.
The evaluation and management of the difficult airway in the
ICU, airway management in fabricating pressure masks for pediatrics,
the use of EMLA® cream for topical anesthesia in
awake intubation and the role of sevoflurane in the management
of the difficult airway are representative of some of the airway-related
topics in the scientific exhibits.
The impact of health management organizations, the rise of physician
practice management companies and their impact on physicians,
patients and payers in the foreseeable future will be presented
in four exhibits. Each exhibit presents a different aspect of
health care changes already under way and their future impact
on anesthesia practice.
Interactive computer education continues to contribute a large
number of scientific exhibits. This technology will feature teaching
programs to review inhalation anesthetics and emphasize the dangers
of mixing volatile anesthetics. Other programs demonstrate the
evolution of the anesthesia gas machine and provide further understanding
of anatomy, physiology and anesthetic management of patients with
congenital heart disease.
The Committee on Scientific and Educational Exhibits wishes to
thank all of the participants for their commitment and creativity
in the preparation of their respective exhibits. We look forward
to a very successful meeting. We are confident that all members
attending the 1997 ASA Annual Meeting shall be well-rewarded by
your efforts.
Andranik Ovassapian, M.D., is Professor
and Associate Chair of the Department of Anesthesiology, Northwestern
University Medical School, Chicago, Illinois.
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