September 05, 2014 Posted by knewell
Those who know me recognize that I am not an expert on all things (or some might say, on anything). Given this reality, and in an effort to keep the president’s blog fresh, I have decided to identify topics that I believe are important and of interest to the members of the AST, and then ask experts to comment and provide their insight.
For the first blog, I invited Bob Gaston, MD, a former AST President and someone with a long-standing interest in disincentives to organ donation, to comment on recent initiatives aimed at removing disincentives to living kidney donation.
The... Read More...
July 27, 2014 Posted by dsalomon
As my term as AST president comes to a close, I find myself reflecting on the end of this “season,” and on what the next “season” will bring. That kind of thinking always makes me remember Pete Seeger’s song covered so famously by The Byrds in 1965, so please listen to it in the background as you read my last post.
I have learned much in the past year, and have relished the opportunity to work with such an amazing group of fellow volunteers on the board of directors. I’ve also gained great insight into what my colleagues are doing, saying, and thinking by interacting with AST’s...
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November 22, 2013 Posted by dsalomon
The current dysfunction in Washington is deplorable and has diminished the lives and business of all Americans. It has impacted transplantation at many levels from the uncertainty created by the partisan fighting over health care reform, arbitrary spending cuts by Sequestration, delay in advancing the Immuno Bill and the self-destructive failure to fund the NIH adequately. But today I can report a bit of hope, literally, that Washington can still accomplish some good things. I witnessed a clear example of the power that working with government, special interest advocacy groups and...
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November 05, 2013 Posted by dsalomon
I’ve just returned home from Madison, Wisconsin and the first event of the new AST Power2Save Initiative – an amazing night of rocking country music to raise money and awareness for the AST’s goals of advancing organ donation, public advocacy and research.
In a terrific venue near the University of Wisconsin campus and Health Center, The Band Perry, Joel Crouse and Scott MacIntyre gave their professional best to over 2,200 people. This concert event was over two years in the making and represents a remarkable...
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August 06, 2013 Posted by dsalomon
Part Three of a Three-Part Series
The shortage of organs for donation has been a long standing issue facing transplantation for years. As a resource for transplantation and patient advocacy, the AST must work to contribute to finding a solution. And after some thoughtful consideration, I believe there are two clear paths that AST can and should explore again in discrete and constructive steps.
The first path is toward increasing deceased donor donation. There can never be enough community education and engagement to explain the "miracle of transplantation" to the public. The...
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July 30, 2013 Posted by dsalomon
Part Two of a Three-Part Series
Last week, in my very first Presidential blog post, I urged us to consider the implications of the message, "it's organ donation stupid." Supply falls short of demand. There are not enough organs to save every patient who needs one to survive. Yet despite the OPTN's system to regulate the allocation of organs, issues arise that publically contest the system. And the most recent issue became my first challenge as President of the Society.
A few weeks ago our nation took notice of a 10-year old girl with cystic fibrosis, Sarah Murnaghan, who had...
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July 23, 2013 Posted by dsalomon
Part One of a Three-Part Series
In the early 1990's a little known Governor from Arkansas was rising rapidly through his party's ranks to win the Democratic nomination for President of the United States. Upon securing the nomination, the Clinton campaign set about developing myriad strategies and policy positions in the hopes of finding a "winner" issue that would help Clinton unseat the then-incumbent President, George H. W. Bush. After examining many strategies and policy issues, there was one single mantra that political consultant James Carville repeated day after day to the...
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May 20, 2013 Posted by rmannon
As I look back over the previous 12 months, I am filled with both gratitude and pride in our leadership; how so many of our volunteers have stepped up and successfully navigated challenges and opportunities for the Society in 2012-2013. We all share the common goal of strengthening, preserving and advancing the field of organ transplantation – understanding that success and failure are never permanent and we must remain constantly vigilant and proactive to protect our field of medicine.
Although I am stepping down this week as President, I am not stepping away from the work of the...
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May 15, 2013 Posted by rmannon
As I look back over the previous 12 months, I am filled with both gratitude and pride at how so many of our volunteer leaders have stepped up and successfully navigated a variety of challenges and opportunities for the Society in 2012-2013. Among our ranks, we all share the common goal of strengthening, preserving and advancing the field of solid organ transplantation. That said, success and failure are never permanent...and it is required of us to constantly remain vigilant and proactive as the guardians of our field of medicine.
Although I am stepping down this week as President...
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April 23, 2013 Posted by rmannon
In just 4 weeks, we will convene in Seattle for the 13th meeting of the American Transplant Congress. As in years past, the organizing committee, which consists of representatives from both AST and ASTS, has put together a jam-packed program of provocative symposia, presentations and workshops on updates in current practice, new insights into alloimmune injury, and emerging research discoveries within our field.
Behind the scenes, staff in the AST offices are working tirelessly to prepare. The AST Board meeting will be the longest we’ve ever...
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