“My favorite aspect of being a SAGES member is my involvement in active committees and attending the annual meeting,” says Dr. 
Timothy Vreeland. “Compared to other associations, SAGES is continuously creating educational material, and the various committees that I’m involved in are very active and relevant. The SAGES video library, guidelines and other educational material are all exceptional resources. I’ve used them to learn new techniques and refine my practice, and it is exciting to now be part of creating this practice-changing material.”
For the past two years, Dr. Vreeland has served on the Military, Oncology and HPB/Solid Organ committees. Through his involvement on the HPB committee, he adds that he’s met exceptional surgeons who’ve become personal mentors, like Dr. Adnan Alseidi, and has had the opportunity to get involved in meaningful, far-reaching efforts to influence the future of HPB surgery.
Dr. Vreeland, who also counts Dr. Rob Lim as a professional mentor, initially joined SAGES as a resident because he’d been told by senior surgeons that SAGES was a “good and worthwhile association.” He then became a full active member to increase his participation in SAGES committees.
In addition to looking forward to the educational programs and catching up with friends August 31-September 3 in Las Vegas, Dr. Vreeland hopes “to continue to develop meaningful content that will help educate surgeons across the country, as well as help develop and publish guidelines that will influence the practice of surgery broadly.”