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Donald O. Quest, MD, is the 2006-2007 AANS president. |
To honor its diamond jubilee, the AANS returns to Washington, D.C., the city where Temple Fay, Eustace Semmes, Glen Spurling and William Van Wagenen founded the Harvey Cushing Society on Oct. 10, 1931. The Cushing Society adopted the name American Association of Neurological Surgeons in 1967, after President Frank Mayfield identified the AANS as the society that represents North American neurosurgeons and speaks for all of neurosurgery.
This “Mayfield proclamation” is echoed in today’s AANS Mission Statement, which was reappraised in anticipation of this anniversary year and approved on April 21:
The American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS) is the organization that speaks for all of neurosurgery. The AANS is dedicated to advancing the specialty of neurological surgery in order to promote the highest quality of patient care.
During the past 75 years the AANS has encouraged the development of all the subspecialty groups within the field and maintains them under its aegis, unifying all aspects of the specialty. The AANS continues to foster collegial relationships with the other professional organizations within neurological surgery, with the house of surgery in general, and indeed with all of medicine. Communication and cooperation are essential among these various entities and are the foundation on which the AANS relies in its advocacy role for neurosurgery to the public, the medical community in general, the government, the media, and third party payers. These principles form the foundation of the current AANS Strategic Plan, which specifies financial, organizational, member service, and advocacy goals.
From the Beginning
The formation of the AANS was driven by the desire for a neurosurgical continuing
education forum that would allow “investigation and advancement in the
fields of neurosurgery,” in the words of Temple Fay. Neurosurgical education
remains an integral function of the AANS, and this dedication is evidenced
in the AANS’ recent focus on supporting the American Board of Neurological
Surgery’s Maintenance of Certification program, which began rollout last
January. Today the AANS produces courses in neurosurgical education, jointly
sponsors such courses and meetings, and provides continuing medical education
opportunities through print publications and online opportunities. At www.MyAANS.org
the AANS offers members and subscribers an online tracking service that tallies
continuing medical education credit for MOC and state certification requirements
as well as for AANS membership requirements.
At the apex of AANS educational programs and representative of AANS activities as a whole is the annual meeting. The upcoming meeting April 14–19 in our nation’s capital most certainly will draw neurosurgeons and related professionals the world over to a memorable event. Annual Meeting Chair Mitchel Berger, MD, and Scientific Program Chair Timothy Mapstone, MD, are preparing the unique mix of science, technology, professional and socioeconomic programs and social events that will constitute the “Celebrating AANS’ Diamond Jubilee” meeting. Historical exhibits and a commemorative book are among the planned special attractions.
An Amazing Epoch
“We are living in an amazing epoch, too near for us to get other than
a blurred picture of its full significance.” This observation by Harvey
Cushing at the dedication of Yale University’s Sterling Hall of Medicine
in 1925 remains true for us today. By 1925 Cushing had seen the recognition
of neurosurgery as a specialty, had led in the development of many advances
that benefited patients, and already himself had become an inspiration.
Cushing sparked the idea for Van Wagenen and colleagues to create our organization, and their foresight would fuel the continual growth of our profession while inspiring generations of neurosurgeons to be of the highest quality and to lead and inspire in their turn. A look at the listing of AANS presidents reminds us of many others on whose shoulders we have stood. I am honored to join their ranks, particularly in such an auspicious year for our organization, and am myself reminded that this is our time to lead and inspire. It is on our shoulders that neurosurgeons of tomorrow will stand, our foresight and determination which will set the course of practice for future colleagues.
This diamond jubilee year is a time to honor the venerable ideals of the AANS founders, ideals which have remained unchanged since the inception of the organization. I invite you to join me in recognizing 75 years of achievement and to step into the future, beginning with the AANS diamond jubilee celebration in April.