Greetings all,
This month’s newsletter has fewer updates than previous newsletters, ahead of our Executive Council meeting on April 24th. Look for more information next month after that meeting, including important website news and updates on various initiatives within our College.
That said, we do have one important update to share about the format of the Annual Scientific Meeting this Fall. Two years ago, in pre-COVID times, we were planning a 2021 meeting at the Sheraton Downtown Hotel in New Orleans, a desirable location right in the heart of the city which I was certainly looking forward to visiting. Much as COVID prevented us from attending our 2020 meeting in Reno, Executive Council needed to decide the format of the New Orleans meeting. Would it be a traditional, in-person meeting? A virtual meeting like the 2020 meeting? A hybrid meeting, which would have both in-person and virtual components? As Program Chairs, Nathalie Rademacher and Michelle Turek have started the planning process, but we needed to make a format decision in order to give some further direction and plan for contingencies.
In short, we are planning for a hybrid meeting this Fall, which will have a major in-person component but also incorporating virtual meeting elements for those unable to attend or for those not quite ready to travel in a post-COVID time. This decision was made at an ad hoc Executive Council meeting in March, as planning needed to commence, and the decision could not wait until April.
This clearly is a complicated decision. There are certainly reasons to have a virtual only event. Above all, there is the unknown of the virus and what it will bring in the coming months. There could be a Summer or Fall wave of cases in this country. Many countries currently have travel restrictions that may prevent entry into the United States. The virtual meeting last year was well received, with many people commenting that they appreciated the ability to access CE while at home, so perhaps all future meetings should be virtual-only. If virus cases continue to decline and personal travel picks up, will folks want to travel to a Scientific Meeting rather than use their personal time to visit loved ones or family?
On the other hand, while a Fall resurgence is possible, there is an encouraging drop (or at least plateauing) of cases in the United States, which hopefully continues as vaccinations become more widely available. The reservation with the hotel in New Orleans was non-refundable, with steep monetary penalties to our College in cancelling or even delaying our event to another year. We did receive comments after the virtual event that many people missed the opportunity to gather as a group and the collegiality within our College this engenders. New Orleans is a desirable location to gather, with the promise of good food and an interesting venue.
Balancing these issues is not easy, but the hybrid model helps balance the positive and negatives of the situation, giving some flexibility in planning depending on the virus situation in the Fall. This is also an opportunity to plan for future meetings post-COVID and incorporating a virtual element to all meetings. Now that the format decision is made, look for more updates with exact details as they are worked out. This will include the balance of virtual versus in-person events, how that might affect CE credits, and so on. Thank you for your understanding and patience as we work through the complicated details of this transition. Many, many thanks to Program Chairs Drs. Nathalie Rademacher and Michelle Turek for their leadership of what has become a by far more complicated job than it appeared two years ago. Thanks also to Dr. Tony Pease, our Education Director, for his insight and experience in planning and running large in-person and online Continuing Education events.
I welcome feedback on this decision, as your input is important as the planning process continues.
Upcoming important dates
April 24 –Executive Council Meeting (online)
All committee chairs should have uploaded their committee reports to their respective Dropbox folder. If you have questions, please reach out to Libby Dietrich.
Be sure to check the Events Calendar on the ACVR dashboard for other upcoming events, deadlines and CE opportunities.
Finally, welcome to Dr. Matt Cannon, the new ACVR treasurer, who starts this month. Many thanks to Dr. Siobhan Haney for her hard work as outgoing ACVR treasurer.
