Message from the President of the 53rd Annual Meeting of Japanese Society of Anesthesiologists
Takashi Mashimo, M.D., D.M.Sc.
President of the 53rd Annual Meeting of Japanese Society of Anesthesiologists
Main Theme: New Territory in Anesthesiology
Dear Colleagues:
On behalf of the Japanese Society of Anesthesiologists (JSA), I am greatly pleased to extend a cordial invitation to the 53rd Annual Meeting of JSA held in Kobe over the 3 days from Thursday June 1st to Saturday June 3rd, 2006. The main theme for the 53rd Annual Meeting is "New Territory in Anesthesiology" Looking at things from a long-range perspective, we should think of the future in anesthesiology. Under this main theme, the meeting program has been planned.
One such area of "new territory" which has been attracting attention on the clinical front is palliative medicine, along with other areas in the care domain. We have therefore planned a panel discussion on the future outlook for palliative medicine, from an anesthesiological perspective. It is also important for anesthesiologists like us to have opportunities to think about euthanasia and dying with dignity: this is why we plan to hold a panel discussion in which Judge Christian Byk of France where euthanasia is officially tolerated under certain circumstances will be invited to participate. A good deal of clinical evidence has been reported recently regarding the post-operative effects on patients of anesthesia (management), and its effect on the survival rate, so we have planned several panel discussions on that theme.
I believe that the JSA plays as important a role as ever with regard to the advancement of basic research on anesthesiology. As you know, the anesthesiological research of recent years has ventured a long way into the interdisciplinary realm, so the JSA have made active efforts to invite researchers from other fields to give lectures and presentations, and to take part in panel discussions. We have invited four academics involved in basic research - Professor Toshio Yanagida, Professor Katsuhiko Mikoshiba, Professor Yoshinori Fujiyoshi and Professor Shinsuke Shimojo to give lectures. Moreover, in order to inspire more young anesthesiologists to take an interest in research, we have planned lectures by young researchers.
We have selected 23 young researchers from a much larger number recommended to us from all over the country, so a good deal of time at the Annual Meeting will be devoted to presentations on their basic and clinical research. We are also planning an in-depth debate, to be jointly chaired by one veteran and one young researcher.
On the other hand, the Annual Meeting is one of the events hosted by the JSA, so its program also needs to continue long-running themes. Therefore, with the Society guidance, we have incorporated into the program forums for the verification of treatment, the analysis of social issues surrounding the Society, and the discussion of countermeasures. More than 10 panel discussions and educational lectures have been penciled in, including those being planned by the Society Committee. Another long-running theme is that of workshops. To improve the anesthetic management skills and capabilities of the Society membership, lectures on the Trans-Esophageal Echo (TEE) procedure and hands-on-training in Difficult Airway Management (DAM) are indispensable, so many relevant workshops have been planned for this Annual Meeting.
The 53rd Annual Meeting is now little more than 6 months away. Although we feel we still have a long way to go in terms of our preparations, we are striving wholeheartedly to make this an event that all participating Members will find worthwhile. To that end, I humbly ask for your kind cooperation.