What
a great annual meeting we had in Hilton Head! Our meeting host, Gary Vasdev
has included a summary of events including pictures of many of the social and
educational activities. A highlight of the meeting was our Distinguished Service
Award presentation, given this year to our SOAP founders. It's quite amazing
to look around and realize how far we've come from the initial six-person "interest
group" meeting in an airport lounge at O'Hare.
Shortly after the Hilton Head meeting it appeared our subspecialty was in for some adverse publicity. In May 2001 the New York Academy of Medicine and the Maternity Center Association (MCA) sponsored a symposium titled "The Nature and Management of Labor Pain".1 A diverse group of obstetricians, nurse midwives, childbirth educators, epidemiologists and public health researchers gathered to discuss information about labor pain, methods to relieve it, ways to assure all women receive information on all methods of labor pain relief and to develop research priorities. A number of SOAP members participated including Don Caton, Val Arkoosh, Barbara Leighton, David Birnbach, Sheila Cohen, Susan Palmer, Mark Rosen and Bill Camann. Larry Saidman (former editor-in-chief of Anesthesiology) moderated. In early May 2002, a press release related to the meeting was circulated and a meeting supplement was published in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology2. Most of the obstetric anesthesiologists who attended the meeting felt the statements in the press release did not accurately reflect the informative and collegial discussions that went on at the meeting, and indeed the portion of the press release concerning regional analgesia for labor was particularly negative. Unfortunately, none of the anesthesiologists attending had input into the press release.
The main concern raised by the MCA was patients receiving complete and accurate information about pain relief techniques and then having all possible options (especially non-pharmacologic ones) available. We certainly support that as well. SOAP's response to MCA's concerns was that non-pharmacologic methods of analgesia should be available to all women as they have few if any side effects and these methods may be effective for some. However, we also recognize that non-pharmacologic methods and the use of support personnel such as doulas are entirely compatible with a patient who ultimately decides to have a regional analgesic. Our main concern was that we would be unable to correct their misrepresentations and inaccuracies about regional analgesia, especially if the press release received wide attention. Fortunately, there seemed to be very little interest by the media when it was ultimately released. As one attendee noted, "it would seem to me that American women are voting with their `contractions' toward epidural analgesia…Will some women be influenced sufficiently [by this report] to elect a bath and a doula rather than an epidural I suppose so, but not many and not for long." The supplement to the "gray journal" is well worth reviewing and hopefully new areas of research and collaboration will come about as a result.
In addition to being an educational and social success, the Annual Meeting was financially successful as well, showing a profit of about $25,000. Our other assets are also doing well under the supervision of Independence Advisors in Philadelphia. The Obstetric Anesthesia and Perinatology Endowment Fund (OAPEF General Fund) has about $150,000, the Gertie Marx OAPEF fund has over $200,000, and we have an additional $140,000 in our Reserve Fund. The OAPEF General Fund supports the Gertie Marx Symposium at the annual meeting with monetary awards for our fellow and resident research competition. Contributions are welcome from everyone and you will receive a written acknowledgment for tax purposes. The Gertie Marx OAPEF Fund supports the Education Research Award given at our annual meeting. Dr. Marx gave a generous endowment to SOAP and the interest from her gift provides the financial portion of that award.
As you begin receiving your dues notices in the next few weeks, you will notice a place to make donations to OAPEF for support of research in obstetric anesthesia, including an award given jointly with ASA's Foundation for Anesthesia Education and Research (FAER). Hopefully everyone will consider giving a donation at the time they renew their membership. We plan to begin mentioning the names of contributors in the newsletter and setting up a program so that members can make donations in honor of a SOAP member. And while you are renewing your membership, consider encouraging one or more of your colleagues to become a SOAP member as well. Our membership numbers are stable (as opposed to other subspecialty groups seeing a decline), but we would love to see more anesthesiologists become involved in our research and educational endeavors.
Our Web site is long overdue for an update, and David Wlody and his Publications Committee have agreed to this undertaking. If you have suggestions for content or ways in which the Web site could serve you better, please let David know. We would like to emphasize patient education as well as member information in separate locations. There is no shortage of patient information on the Internet about pain relief in childbirth, but little of it is accurate or well-balanced. We hope to make the SOAP website the place everyone laypersons and medical personnel goes to for the most up to date information on peripartum anesthetic care for the parturient.
Finally, the 2003 Annual Meeting will be held May 14-17 in Phoenix, AZ at the Pointe Hilton at Squaw Peak . Craig Palmer (Meeting Host) and Dick Wissler (President-elect) are hard at work finalizing an excellent program. Please reserve that time to attend. On-line submission of abstracts will be open November 1 with a deadline of January 31, 2003, so finish up that project and get that data ready to go! Our Distinguished Service Award recipient for 2003 is Dr. Brett Gutsche of the University of Pennsylvania, and he will be honored during the meeting and at the banquet. A good time will be had by all hope to see you there!
Joy L. Hawkins, MD
SOAP President