Conferences and Teaching

Each Wednesday, a two-hour teaching session is attended by all vascular fellows, residents, students and teaching staff.  One hour of each conference is dedicated to a clinical indications session.  In each session, complex vascular problems for management in the upcoming week and emergent management from the prior week are presented and discussed in detail.  Evidence-based data relating to the best management strategies are emphasized.  Moreover, two Wednesdays each month are dedicated to hour-long presentations of vascular topics.  This didactic series follows a two-year circle during which there is comprehensive presentation of key vascular topics.  A detailed description of all conferences appears below.

• Vascular Indication Conference. This one-hour, weekly conference is conducted by Dr. K. Hansen. Vascular intervention planned for the upcoming week and unplanned emergent/urgent intervention from the prior week are presented. All relevant imaging (i.e. angiograms, MRA/CTA, noninvasive vascular studies, etc.) relevant to patient management are reviewed. Evidence-based treatment options for open surgical repair versus endovascular intervention versus medical management are reviewed. Discussion culminates in a management recommendation. This conference emphasizes the evidence-based choice of therapies, the methods of management, the interpretation of vascular imaging, interpretation of noninvasive vascular imaging and represents a synthesis of decision-making in each area.
• Vascular Disease Conference. This one-hour, bi-weekly conference is organized by Dr. M. Edwards. Material chosen for didactic presentation reflects uncommon, infrequently encountered topics in vascular disease.
• Vascular Morbidity/Mortality Conference. This one-hour monthly conference is conducted by Dr. R. Geary. All inpatient morbidities extending hospital stay or re-intervention are reviewed. All deaths are reviewed. When autopsy materials are available, the responsible pathologist is present to correlate clinical and pathologic findings. Ultimately the findings from this conference are used to create quality improvements and quality assurance of clinical care.
• Vascular Journal Club Conference. This one-hour monthly conference is conducted by Dr. M. Edwards. Literature pertaining to basic science findings relevant to vascular disease and clinical trials are reviewed. Study methodology, statistical analysis and translation to clinical care are emphasized.
• Vascular Forum. This forum is conducted twice a year by Dr. K. Hansen. Academic leaders in Vascular Surgery spend two days at the WFUHS where they participate in a Grand Rounds presentation and attend a resident case conference. Afterwards, there is an evening conference where vascular specialists from a hundred and fifty mile radius are in attendance. The conference is sponsored by WL Gore and Associates and provides case management commentary, with case presentations by the guest speaker, outside vascular specialists, and residents in training.
• Basic Science Research Meeting. Dr. Geary's Vascular Biology Research Laboratory holds a weekly two-hour basic science conference each Tuesday afternoon at 1:00 pm to review ongoing research protocols and related vascular biology. The pre- and postdoctoral fellows in the laboratory present current literature and unpublished results pertaining to their specific projects and review experimental design and rationale of ongoing research. Data are reviewed and alternate explanations for results are explored. Invited outside speakers are regularly included in the discussions and presentations.
• Clinical Science Research Meeting. This two-hour conference is conducted by Dr. K. Hansen each Thursday afternoon at 1:00 pm. In attendance are Vascular Research Fellows, residents, a clinical research coordinator, a data coordinator, and two statisticians. The progress of current clinical research projects are discussed with emphasis on clinical research design, data analysis and interpretation.