SAGES Member Spotlight

Dr. Amber Shada was initially urged to attend SAGES 2010 annual meeting in Washington D.C.  by her residency mentor Dr. Bruce Schirmer, after which she joined SAGES as a fellow at the urging of Drs. Christy Dunst, Kevin Reavis and Lee Swanstrom. “SAGES is the preeminent society for laparoscopic and endoscopic surgeons, and I became an active member recognizing its value not just for my own practice but for all of the trainees I work with.”

Those initial mentors, , are now part of a list of mentors that Dr. Shada says has become too many to count. “As I have become increasingly involved, I could list dozens of SAGES members who have shaped my career in a meaningful way and continue to do so.”

Current co-chair of SAGES Flexible Endoscopy committee, Dr. Shada has also been active in the Educational Resources and Continuing Education committees. This involvement has included her overseeing the Train the Trainer courses that prepare SAGES ADOPT course faculty to be expert operative instructors.

She says it’s the number of mentors and “hands down all of the gifted surgeons willing to share their talents and help mentor the next generation of surgeons is what makes SAGES so special. SAGES has a real focus on surgeon development, from early career development to technical skill development for practicing surgeons. My favorite SAGES recurring activity is the fellows advanced endoscopy course, which is held annually and generates so much excitement surrounding endoscopy for the fellows.”

The annual meeting is, of course, the other recurring annual event that generates excitement for SAGES members and Dr. Shada, who was honored to interview Dr. Swanstrom during the Pioneers of Foregut session in 2019 in Baltimore. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n_t_kioNHeE

Looking ahead at her SAGES involvement, she says, “I’ll continue to push endoscopic training back into the forefront of general surgery resident training, and work to interface with interventional radiology and gastroenterology to provide cutting edge minimally invasive GI surgical care that crosses disciplines.”

It looks like Dr. Shada, a former weightlifter and college equestrian who still lifts, practices gymnastics and rides in her spare time, will also continue to push herself physically– which should help keep her in top surgical shape!

 

 

 

 

As current chair of SAGES Advocacy and Health Policy committee, advocacy on the local, state and national level has been Dr. Ross Goldberg’s “comfort zone” for more than 20 years.

As a passionate advocate for both SAGES and patients, Dr. Goldberg actively works to impact a wide range of healthcare policies, including, but not limited to, physician reimbursement, administrative burden and patient access to care.  “I really like talking to politicians, including governors and Congress,” he says. “Our impact comes from telling stories and framing issues in a realistic way and letting a politician know how certain laws affect patients.”

He also serves as SAGES liaison to the National Alliance of Healthcare Purchaser Coalitions, serving on their Physician Executive Advisory Council, providing companies with best practices on setting up employee health plans, and providing doctors with new ways to collaborate with insurance companies and the FDA.

Since initially joining SAGES as a fellow in 2010, Dr. Goldberg has also been involved in several other SAGES committees, including the Technology Council and Quality Outcomes and Safety. He counts among his early mentors former SAGES president Drs. Dan Smith, Dan Jones, and Horacio Asbun.

Dr. Goldberg notes that ongoing support provided by SAGES presidents, along with the entire leadership team, is really one of the “special things” about SAGES, adding, “Former and current leadership are so accessible, and sharing and opinion-seeking always works both ways.”

While Dr. Goldberg is active in multiple organizations, he strongly promotes SAGES to residents as the one association that addresses serious issues but doesn’t take itself too seriously. “We’re much more relaxed and focused on our patients and growing the next generation of surgeons than being impressed with ourselves.”

Noting that it’s been fun to see advocacy’s expanding footprint within SAGES, Dr. Goldberg will step down as chair next year, though still plans to remain on the board and “serve SAGES the best way I can.” The Lego enthusiast might even have more time to pursue his 780,000 piece hobby!

 

 

 

If there’s a consistent theme among SAGES members, it’s that SAGES is FUN—a sentiment also shared by Dr. Kellie McFarlin.

“What makes SAGES special compared to other associations is that it’s always advancing, showing the latest in surgical innovations and always keeping learning fun,” says Dr. McFarlin, adding that her favorite aspect of being a SAGES member is access to top training and video courses for her residents.

Always interested in minimally invasive surgery, the Detroit-based Dr. McFarlin joined SAGES in her second year of residency at Wayne State University. She’s been active on both the Advocacy and Communications Committees since 2011, and currently serves as chair of the Communications Committee.

Dr. McFarlin was initially introduced to SAGES committees by Dr. Vic Velanovich and mentored over the years by a number of SAGES members, including Drs. Butch Rosser, Patricia Turner, Ross Goldberg, Patricia Sylla and Sharona Ross.

Again echoing an often repeated theme, Dr. McFarlin loves the annual meeting Sing-Off, though this Star Wars fan also fondly remembers the Star Wars breakout room during the 2020 virtual meeting.

Most SAGES members likely know that Dr. McFarlin is mom to twin girls Brooklyn and Kathryn (and a dog not surprisingly named Leia!). What they likely don’t know is that she conducted ultrasound and minimally invasive surgery experiments on NASA’s retired KC-35 (otherwise known as the Vomit Comet) as a NIH Research Fellow and that she was women’s foil team captain in college.

What fellow members can be assured of is that Dr. McFarlin plans to be a long-term SAGES member. “Nothing can replace the energy that SAGES brings to the field of surgery. It not only represents the best in innovative surgery, but also surgical camaraderie.”

 

As a fellowship trained Trauma and Acute Care surgeon, Dr. Michael Cripps points out that his membership story is a bit different. “I have always believed in the benefits of minimally invasive surgery. As a new faculty member, I made a comment during an M&M case that I supported an MIS approach over an open approach for a case, which was a relatively unheard of sentiment for a trauma surgeon. In the audience that day was future SAGES President Dr. Danny Scott who found me after the conference and told me he had a perfect opportunity for me to join SAGES! It was with his encouragement, support, and leadership that the Acute Care Surgery(ACS) committee was formed to help promote the use of MIS in Acute Care Surgery.”

After involvement with a few SAGES committees, Dr. Cripps found his home as one of the inaugural members of the Acute Care Surgery Task Force, serving as Vice Chair at its inception. The variety of committee participation was great experience because, as a trauma surgeon, he says he often felt a little out of place but the combined experiences enabled him to meet many of the SAGES leaders.

What most endears Dr. Cripps to SAGES is that it’s a “visionary-based society constantly moving forward,” along with the “so many” SAGES members who’ve acted as mentors. For him, two stand out the most: Dr. Danny Scott and Dr. Rob Lim, adding that, “One of Danny’s more brilliant moves was to bring Rob Lim over to be the inaugural chair of the ACS Task Force and to pair us together to build it. Anyone who knows Rob knows that he is an amazing human. He and I became quick friends, and he deserves all the credit making the committee what it is today.”

He also credits Dr. Lim with his most memorable experiences at a joint AAST-SAGES session. “We had past, present and future presidents of both societies presenting and it was standing room only! It had taken an immense amount of work to bring it all together and seeing the response from SAGES membership made it all worthwhile. This would not have been possible without Rob’s expertise and friendship.”

The fact that Acute Care Surgery has recently become one of the top five topics of interest to SAGES members continues to inspire Dr. Cripps. “I definitely plan on being a lifelong member of SAGES! My plan is to stay active and help provide the next generation of leaders and members all the support and education that I can deliver.”

An active martial arts enthusiast, Dr. Cripps balances his passion of Acute Care Surgery by practicing Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and Taekwondo with his two kids. Last year, he and his family moved to Colorado and are also all enjoying skiing, hiking and fly fishing.

 

“I love that SAGES played and continues to play a significant role in establishing the standards around quality and safety with all things minimally invasive. Because of this, there is a certain humility and adventure around the work of SAGES. While never cavalier or cowboyish, it’s always forward thinking and unassuming. This lack of fear around intellectual curiosity and change ensures that we will always be learning and will always be made humble.”

Looking back on her years as a resident at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital, Dr. Nia Zalamea wanted to be well-prepared when she went into private practice. This is one of the reasons she took the advice of Dr. David Thoman to join SAGES and take advantage of the society’s many educational resources.

Dr. Zalamea says, “When I went straight into private practice, attending SAGES meetings became even more important as I was no longer in academics but wanted to make sure that I continued to learn about new techniques and hone my laparoscopy skills.”

Now back in academics, Dr. Zalamea is founder and director of the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC) Global Surgery Institute and Associate Director for the UTHSC Center for Multicultural and Global Health. She is also Vice President and board chair for Memphis Mission of Mercy, an NGO focused on service to the poor via quality medical and surgical care. For Dr. Zalamea surgical mission work has been her family’s work since 1999. https://styleblueprint.com/memphis/everyday/how-this-general-surgeon-her-family-serve-memphis-and-beyond

As an active member of SAGES Global Affairs committee, she shares that same focus on the underserved.

“I believe laparoscopy should be promoted and used worldwide, and it’s important to engage with surgeons, providing tools and training in their own communities. But having been in private practice when my surgical care put my patient’s family into bankruptcy because of their lack of insurance, and their inability to pay their hospital bills, our job is never done until access to affordable minimally invasive surgery is obtained across the world.

My hope is that combining my interest in minimally invasive surgery, access to care, and work with the underserved, we’ll able to discover ways to make the procedures that we do more affordable, accessible, safe and with outcomes that allow people to get back on their feet again regardless of their socioeconomic status. I fundamentally believe that the poor pay more not only in terms of quality of care, but cost of care and for this reason we must focus on them and their outcomes and their costs in order to improve care across the board.”

Outside of being a surgeon, her mission work and SAGES, Dr. Zalamea is married to a photographer, mom to two young boys, and loves music, literature and stand up paddleboarding. “This balance,” she says, “saves me every day.”