President’s Message

I hope everyone has had a decent and safe start to their year. SOCCA has continued to develop as a Society under our new administration team at ARC. We have been adding flesh to the strong bones of the organization. With three standing committees and a host of active committees and subgroups reporting to them, there is a lot of activity along multiple themes. There is something for everyone, including education, quality, research, clinical subspecialties and our incredibly productive Women in Critical Care (WICC) group. Each of these committees harness the amazing creative energies you bring to the organization. No doubt you saw the call for volunteers. I want to thank all of you for your service. It is through your efforts that SOCCA succeeds!

One big item we are proud to have accomplished is the update of our bylaws. We have successfully produced a document that covers our core operational considerations, that says enough for us to operate, but not so much as to bog us down in detail. Many thanks to Craig Jabaley for tirelessly championing the effort and keeping the details straight, and Jennifer Rzepka for helping us come up with a solid framework, a plan going forward for efficient governance, and an even keener eye for detail. While we become inclusive and engaging, we remain nimble and improve our efficiencies.

For many of you, the jewel of the Society is its Annual Meeting. SOCCA’s educational offerings will be held in one room as a component of the IARS Annual Meeting. You won’t have to constantly search for our members or our panels. As a hint: we will have SOCCA swag in Hawaiian theme. We are happy to once again offer multiple days of content and look forward to the presentations. Many thanks to Allison Dalton and Kunal Karamchandani for helping to put together such an exciting program! Through a generous donation, we are also excited to announce our first annual SOCCA/APSF Invited Lecture in Patient Safety, this year presented by Meghan Lane-Fall. We are also excited to announce the second recipient of the SOCCA Innovator Award, awarded to Ankur Srivastava for the development of a novel wearable device to detect the aortic mixing cloud in ECMO perfusion. I am proud to be a part of an organization that helps inspire new ideas and disseminate important information. Watch for “SOCCA Social” events - we are eager to get together at this meeting and others throughout the year.

It’s a great time to be a member. Tell your friends. As always, listen to good music. If you want to get in the mood for the meeting, check out Israel “IZ” Kamakawiwo’ole’s “Somewhere Over the Rainbow/What a Wonderful World” medley. No matter how bad a day you might have had, it will bring a little smile to your face.

Stay engaged, SOCCA, and see you in Hawai’i!

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