Medical Student
Delegation Continuing Growth Spurt
Mark A. Hoeft, Chair
ASA Medical Student Delegation
 he
Medical Student Delegation (MSD) continues to grow
since its inception in 2003 under the auspices of
the ASA Resident Component (ASARC). Currently the
MSD has more than 900 members in both allopathic and
osteopathic schools throughout the United States.
As a relatively new section, our primary goal this
year has been to build upon the previous work of developing
the MSD’s infrastructure. So far a new Web site
dedicated to the MSD <www.ASAhq.org/msd>
and a listserve have been developed.
The purpose of the MSD has always been twofold: 1)
to increase student involvement at the state and national
level and 2) to increase student exposure to anesthesiology
and perioperative medicine at medical schools across
the nation. Utilizing the listserve, MSD members have
been recruited from more than 62 medical schools.
Furthermore each member school in turn hosts an anesthesiology
interest group, further exposing medical students
to anesthesiology as a potential career choice. Due
to the great interest expressed by member schools,
delegate members of the MSD convened at the ASA 2006
Annual Meeting in Chicago last October.
Topics of discussion at this inaugural meeting included
the future of the MSD, with its establishment as a
separate component from the ASARC and creation and
continued support for medical student fellowships,
including the Medical Student Anesthesia Research
Fellowship and the new Medical Student Rural Medicine
Fellowship.
An open forum also allowed the students to provide
ideas on how the MSD can better serve other medical
students. I was impressed with the clarity and vision
that so many of the members expressed — it was
wonderful to meet so many amazing future leaders of
ASA! Unfortunately numerous students who wanted to
attend were not able to do so because of financial
constraints. It is our hope that over time more anesthesiology
departments and state societies will be able to provide
funding for students interested in attending the Annual
Meeting. In the upcoming year, the MSD hopes to provide
more lectures and workshops, including a simulator
session and panels on the residency application process.
Though the MSD will act as an organization separate
from ASARC, both will have the same general objective
of strengthening the field of anesthesiology. While
similar in many respects, the MSD and ASARC contain
two distinct sets of members with different objectives
and needs. The goal will be for our component to have
distinct leadership, bylaws and a budget that will
allow for the MSD to function as a separate entity
from the ASARC but still under the guidance of the
Committee on Residents and Medical Students.
This is an exciting time for the MSD, and we thank
ASA and ASARC for their continued support! Without
them the MSD would certainly not have come this far.
In particular we would like to thank Committee on
Residents and Medical Students Chair Ronald L. Harter,
M.D., who has supported us throughout our inception,
and ASARC Immediate Past President Benjamin D. Unger,
M.D., who not only guided us through this process
but has mentored the leaders of the MSD. We also give
special thanks to ASA Director of Information Services
Janice L. Plack and Web Administrator Anita Abbatacola,
who have both put much time and effort into the creation
of a Medical Student Delegation Web site for further
medical student outreach, and Assistant Executive
Director Denise M. Jones and Membership Services Manager
Robert M. Wallace for their administrative support.
I would personally like to thank the 2005-06 MSD Officers:
Victor G. Moulin, Chair-Elect; Brad N. Brian, Secretary;
Jaya Bahl, Member at Large; Rafael Vazquez, M.D.,
Senior Advisor; Brad M. Taicher, D.O., Alternate;
Jason R. Gillihan, M.D., Alternate; and Zach W. Chambers,
Alternate. This was an amazing group of leaders who
accomplished far more than was expected over the one-year
term.
We hope that the MSD will continue to strengthen ASA
and provide leadership opportunities for young physicians
interested in pursuing a career in anesthesiology.
Questions regarding the Medical Student Delegation
may sent to 2005-06 MSD Chair Mark A. Hoeft <mhoeft@uvm.edu>,
or 2006-07 MSD Chair Victor G. Moulin <moulin81@gmail.com>.
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Mark A. Hoeft, is a fourth-year medical student
at the University of Vermont College of Medicine,
Burlington, Vermont. |
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