Editor's Message

By Sean Flack, MBChB, FCA
SPA News Editor

Warm greetings to you all. Typically, this time of year means a respite from crazy summer clinical workloads, happy memories of summer travels and time spent catching up with our children, families and friends. The aforementioned kids are back into their school routines and our attentions can return to academic endeavors and clinical projects. Of course, not so much this year!

I write this while at 33,000 feet somewhere between Seattle and Philadelphia accompanying my daughter to her college return. Is this a good idea? Who knows? Will the semester proceed to its planned completion date or will COVID dismantle the plans in place to keep her and her fellow students safe? My high school daughter started her new year virtually yesterday. Hopefully, her biorhythms will quickly readjust from the late night to midday sleep routine she has been following over the summer.

With this introduction in mind, the publication of our first newsletter article on wellness is most timely. Thanks to Heather Levy, DO and the leaders of the new SPA Wellness SIG for their expertise. We are going to lean on them greatly in the months ahead.

October will be significant for our first virtual Annual Meeting. While I am very sad to miss the opportunity to be in Washington, DC with everybody, I know that the organizing committee has quickly pivoted to the virtual platform and that an outstanding meeting is in store for us.

October also marks changes on your SPA Board with at-large members rotating off and new members joining. My time on the board is up and I will greatly miss the wonderful collaborations I have enjoyed in service to the Society. Congratulations to the new Board and Executive Committee members. Your Board is active and busy, and the Society is in great hands, superbly supported by the team at Ruggles.

Changes are also happening at committee level. Relevant to the newsletter, Sean Barnes, MD, MBA (Johns Hopkins) assumes the Chair position of the Communications Committee. Sean is replaced as Vice-chair by Dabe Chatterjee, MD (Children’s Colorado) and finally, Erin Williams, MD (Texas Children’s) becomes the new Editor of this newsletter.

What a fantastic group to take the committee to the next level. The time is now to get involved if you have an interest in contributing to SPA’s ongoing success and growth. Speaking personally, I started as a newsletter contributor and that was a great path to increased involvement and responsibility. Getting involved truly enriches one’s experience as a SPA member. The contact information for all committee leaders is available on the SPA website and your interest will be warmly welcomed.

This final newsletter for me is a mixture of education and updates. The pro-con debate (spinal versus general anesthesia in neonates) is a subject dear to my heart as someone with an interest in regional anesthesia. Updates from ASA’s Committee on Pediatric Anesthesia, SPA’s Pediatric Anesthesia Program Director’s Association and Trainee SIG hint at the challenges and opportunities facing our subspecialty.

As always, the SPA President and AAP Chair, Section on Pediatric Anesthesia have submitted messages specific to the work of SPA and AAP.

Thank you for reading the newsletter and for making our Society the wonderful organization that it is. We are committed to improving where we can and I hope whoever you are and wherever you work, that you will help us meet our mission now and in the future.