2025 Leadership and Advocacy Workshops

Workshop 1 - Leadership in Action: Making the Most of Your Communications Opportunities—From Published Research to Media Interviews

• Saturday, April 5, 10:00 am–1:00 pm
• Hosted by The ACS Division of Integrated Communications
• Fee: $120
• Advance registration is required, and capacity is limited. Lunch is included.

The ACS Division of Integrated Communications (IC) is offering an interactive workshop to share best practices on research manuscript submission and sharpen your presentation and media interview skills. Thomas K. Varghese, MD, MS, MBA, FACS, incoming Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of the American College of Surgeons (JACS), will join the IC team to discuss how to increase your chances of publication in JACS, answer your questions about the process, and explain how to effectively present published research to drive greater visibility and impact among peers and patients.

The IC team also will guide attendees on developing and delivering effective messages, whether it’s through public presentations, media interviews, or on social media. In an era of information overload, it’s more important than ever to be able to convey clear and convincing messages to all of your audiences. This session will help hone your communications skills, perfect media interview techniques with hands-on practice, and identify opportunities to effectively promote your research.     

Workshop 2 - Sustaining Lifelong Surgeon Competency

• Saturday, April 5, 1:00–2:50 pm
• Todd K. Rosengart, MD, MBS, FACS, vice president for hospital operations and quality improvement; professor and chair, DeBakey Bard Chair of Surgery, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX
• Peter Angelos, MD, PhD, FACS, MAMSE, Linda Kohler Anderson Professor of Surgery and Surgical Ethics; director, Maclean Center for Clinical Medical Ethics, University of Chicago Medicine, Chicago, IL
• Jennifer Rosen, MD, FACS, chief of endocrine surgery, vice chair for research, department of surgery, MedStar Washington Hospital Center, Washington, DC
• Fee: $90; Combo discount with Workshop 2: $150

Ensuring the lifelong competency of surgeons is a fundamental ethical responsibility of surgeons and a critically important topic for the public. As surgeons, it is essential that we do everything possible to maintain competency throughout our entire care while also successfully preparing for “life after the operating room.”

Recently published blueprints on this topic from ACS and the Society of Surgical Chairs have provided guidance but more work is needed to define the next steps to successfully implement this into practice. This workshop will take these plans to the next level by exploring issues around lifelong surgeon competency and extending the professional life cycle of surgeons to help direct ACS in defining our path forward.

The workshop will explore the pros and cons of this endeavor via:

• An audience-engaging portfolio of provocative case presentations
• Pro and con debate
• Expert panel with audience survey participation
• Hands-on workstations for audience members to explore the viability of cognitive, eye-hand motor testing, and other behavioral testing.

An expert panel of surgeons, behavioral scientists, neuro psychometricians, legal experts, and clinical outcomes researchers will explore how best to maintain clinical and non-clinical competencies as a surgeon.

Workshop 3 - The Human Margin: Building the Foundations of Trust

• Saturday, April 5, 3:00–4:50 pm
• Katherine A. Meese, PhD, assistant professor, director of research, UAB Medicine Office of Wellness, Birmingham, AL
• Fee: $90; Combo discount with Workshop 3 - $150

Dr. Meese presents a science-backed leadership session that integrates the latest workplace research with tactics to create high-performance environments where people can flourish. The Human Margin: Building the Foundations of Trust Workshop interprets new research on what today’s healthcare workforce really wants and finds that trust in leadership is at the heart of everything.