from the editor

My Last Column as Editor

Dr. LathamBy Greg Latham, MD
Seattle Children’s Hospital
University of Washington Medical Center

It is a bittersweet feeling as I write my last ‘Letter from the Editor’ and hand the reigns over to Dr. Viviane Nasr and a talented new leadership team. On one hand, I will miss the wonderful and enriching opportunity working alongside incredible colleagues on the committee and witnessing firsthand the rapid expansion of the society’s online educational content. On the other hand, I am excited by the injection of new talent into the committee and eagerly anticipate their accomplishments to come.

I am proud to announce the new members and promotions of the CCAS Communications Committee. Each will serve a two-year term.

  • Dr. Viviane Nasr - Editor, Chair of Communications Committee
  • Dr. Stephanie Grant - Associate Editor
  • Dr. Laura Berenstain - Education Initiative Team
  • Dr. Andrew Matisoff - Education Initiative Team
  • Dr. Pablo Matto - Education Initiative Team

Congratulations to all and welcome to our new members on the Communications Committee leadership team. As you might notice, the team has grown, with an increase of the size of the Education Initiatives Team. Writing, reviewing, and expanding the educational content on the website has become a busy task, and sharing the load will help grow and improve the content that our members and non-members have come to expect from our excellent website.

I also want to thank Rania Abbasi and Stephanie Grant for their tireless work on the Education Initiative Team the past two years. And I want to thank all of the talented CCAS members who applied but did not receive a leadership position within the committee. All members are invited to attend the Communications Committee meeting at our annual conference and to participate in the contribution of educational content for the website year-round. "Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much." – Helen Keller

The focus of this newsletter is on collaborative international care of children with heart disease and the role that global relationships between heart centers can play in improving the perioperative care of children, despite varied socioeconomics. We are proud to publish two incredible reviews from cardiac anesthesiologists in countries with different resource constraints compared to North America. Dr. Priska Bastola from Tribhuvan University, Katmandu, Nepal, coauthors an informative piece with Drs. Mark Twite, Richard Ing, and Scott Stenquist from the University of Colorado, comparing and contrasting the care of children with heart disease in Katmandu versus Denver. Through their experience gained during reciprocal visits at each center, the authors highlight the need for global outreach to attain the goal of excellent perioperative care of this vulnerable pediatric population.

In the other contribution, Dr. Bruno Araújo Silva from Fortaleza, Cera, Brazil shares the experience caring for children with heart disease in a resource constrained area of Brazil. Collaboration with the Heart Center at Seattle Children’s Hospital has been a rewarding experience for both sides. The importance of these contributions is to highlight two examples of international collaboration between centers in regions with abundant resources and those with inherent resource constraints. The opportunities for universities, programs and individuals to engage globally in the interest of improving care of children with heart disease is nearly limitless.

Lastly, be sure to read Dr. Kirsten Odegard’s summary for our upcoming annual conference in Houston. Drs. Kirsten Odegard, Jim Spaeth, and Susan Nicolson have assembled another incredible program, and I very much look forward to attending and seeing many of you soon in Houston.

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