More than 5,700 neurosurgeons, neuroscience nurses, physician assistants, and technical exhibitors gathered in New Orleans, Louisiana, April 24 to 29 for the 67th Annual Meeting of The American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS). Packed with clinical skill courses and socioeconomic information, this year’s gathering set the standard as one of the premiere gatherings for neurosurgeons in the world.
L.N. Hopkins, MD, Annual Meeting Chairman, and Steven L. Giannotta, MD, Scientific Program Chairman, assembled an outstanding program, which included 8 symposia, 124 research papers, 35 hands-on clinics, 78 educational seminars, and 561 posters. In addition, a record-setting 669 technical and institutional exhibits showcased the latest neurosurgical instrumentation and equipment.
Following is a summary of meeting highlights:
Presidential Address
On Monday, April 26, Russell L. Travis, MD, the 1998-99 President of the AANS, highlighted a myriad of historic and contemporary heroes in his Presidential Address. He focused his remarks on individuals whose actions had a profound influence on the development of our nation.
“Just as there are military heroes, political heroes, cultural heroes and athletic heroes, there are heroes in medicine as well,” Dr. Travis said. “To act courageously and be heroes for our patients in this environment of corporate medicine will require more than physical courage; it will require fortitude. Fortitude is the stuff of heroes…it is the kind of tenacity that helps physicians move the powers that be to continue to provide patients appropriate treatment.
“For us as neurosurgeons to be heroes, we must remember that the real heroes in medicine are our patients — the people who literally lay their lives down before us and trust that we will do the right things for them.”
Dr. Travis also thanked the membership for their strong support and addressed some of the obstacles organized medicine will face in the next millennium. “The 21st century will strain our healthcare system and bring challenges well beyond the ones we’ve seen in the 1990s. Given this, our patients, the sick among us and the healthcare system will desperately need our moral leadership and medical statesmanship. I personally plan on sticking around a while longer to assure the future of the tremendous young talent that I see in neurosurgery, as well as the future of our patients.”
The full text of Dr. Travis’ address will be published in its entirety in the Journal of Neurosurgery.
Cushing Orator
On Tuesday, April 27, former President George Bush delivered the Cushing Oration to a crowd of cheering meeting attendees. In his talk, Mr. Bush shared several lighthearted stories about his life after the White House, and offered his thoughts on foreign policy and the conflict in Yugoslavia.
He said, “Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic is a serious threat to the world we seek to build on more peaceful and democratic values. I do believe that he has committed crimes against humanity, and the brutality of this dictator must be stopped.
“But as the airstrikes continue, I am very deeply troubled with what I see over there. If I were to give advice, I would say define the mission. If you need military force, let them fight it with plenty of overwhelming military power…and then come home.”
He said he relied on those same principles when defending the United States’ policy not to invade Baghdad in the Gulf War. “My decision to move forward with Operation Desert Storm was in an effort to drive Iraq out of Kuwait, not Saddam Hussein out of power.” He explained, “Driving Saddam out of power would have been impractical because the United States would have been alone in that job and become an occupying force with no easy way out.”
Concluding his presentation, Mr. Bush noted, “As the sole remaining superpower, if you want your children to live prosperously in the 21st century, the United States must lead. American leadership is an absolutely indispensable ingredient for extending the promise of democratic capitalism and freedom into the next millennium.”