December 2001
Volume 65 |
Number 12
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ADMINISTRATIVE
UPDATE
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| Volunteer Members Make the
Difference |
Glenn W. Johnson, Executive Director
Other medical specialty societies look to ASA as a leader in
staff efficiency. While ASA has a total staff of 54 individuals,
other specialties with a similar size membership have as many
as 150-200 staff members. How does ASA accomplish so much while
utilizing fewer resources?
I believe the answer to that question lies in the outstanding
efforts of our volunteer members. What many other medical organizations
accomplish with paid staff, ASA accomplishes through the activities
and leadership of our members.
ASA’s educational program is second to none. Each year an
enormous group of volunteer members plan the content of the Annual
Meeting, regional meetings, the Self-Education and Evaluation
(SEE) Program, the new Certificate in Business Administration
Program, our latest Web-based Workshop on Pain Management and
a multitude of other educational offerings. The success of these
programs is due to the fact that they are planned by anesthesiologists
for anesthesiologists.
In spite of the terrorist attack on the United States on September
11, more than 13,000 individuals attended the 2001 Annual Meeting
in New Orleans, Louisiana. That is not as many as we had originally
anticipated because a large number of registrants from outside
the United States decided on short notice not to travel. However,
the relatively substantial number of attendees attests to the
content and value of the Annual Meeting.
This year, approximately 7,000 copies of the SEE Program books
and CD-ROMs will be sold to ASA members. This program is developed
each year by an editorial board composed entirely of volunteer
members. For them, it is obviously a labor of love. For the members,
this program offers an excellent opportunity for self-assessment.
For ASA, this program provides substantial income to fund other
worthwhile activities.
In the world of science, ASA has many claims to fame through
the efforts of volunteer members. Our journal, Anesthesiology,
is the premier journal with the largest circulation of any anesthesiology
journal in the world. Although the editors receive a small honorarium,
it is miniscule compared to the time and energy devoted to the
review and revision of submitted manuscripts.
While many other medical societies are just now creating foundations,
ASA has been a leader in this area. Again, through the devotion
of volunteer members, the Anesthesia Foundation (for resident
loans), the Wood Library-Museum of Anesthesiology, the Anesthesia
Patient Safety Foundation and the Foundation for Anesthesia Education
and Research are achieving incomparable success. ASA’s role
in the improvement of patient safety, in the advancement of anesthesia
research and in the preservation of anesthesia history are the
envy of many other organizations, and I am regularly asked by
my peers to describe the methods utilized for our achievements.
With publication of Medicare’s final rule on November 13
preserving the physician-supervision requirement, the efforts
of our members in the area of advocacy have hit a new high. ASA’s
leaders have been calling on our members frequently over the past
four years, and thousands of members have repeatedly answered
the call. Thanks to the direct involvement of ASA members, the
political leaders in Washington, D.C., are well aware that anesthesiologists
fervently care about patient safety.
Because of ASA’s high degree of volunteerism, the ASA staff
is able to devote most of its energy to logistical administration.
This includes everything from convention center rentals, to publishing
arrangements, to Web site formatting, to the coordination of lobbyist
activities.
I might also add that I am particularly proud of the ASA staff
attitude toward volunteerism. Our annual staff outing was scheduled
for Saturday, September 15, but following the terrorist attacks
on September 11, the staff decided to cancel the outing and instead
contribute the cost of the outing to the Police and Firefighters’
Widows and Orphans’ Fund in New York City.
If volunteerism is contagious, then it appears that ASA’s
members and staff are enjoying an epidemic!
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