VOLUME 36, ISSUE 1

SUMMARY OF ACTIONS
TSA HOUSE OF DELEGATES
September 7-8, 2023

    1. Recognized and applauded special guests from the American Society of Anesthesiologists, Texas ASA officers, new members of the TSA and TSA Past Presidents.
    2. Recognized Baylor College of Medicine, Baylor Scott & White-Temple, Houston Methodist Hospital, McGovern Medical School at UT-Houston, Texas Tech Health Science Center-Lubbock, UT Health Science Center-San Antonio, UT Medical Branch-Galveston, and UT Southwestern Medical Center for maintaining 100% resident membership in the TSA.
    3. Recognized Dr. Joseph Bryan and the Credentials Committee for their work and efforts to secure a quorum at the House of Delegates meetings.
    4. Accepted Resolution 1-TSA Fund Travel Expenses for Western Caucus Meetings.
    5. Recognized Dr. John Scott for his six years of service on the ASA PAC Board and Dr. Perry who was recently appointed to the ASA PAC Board.
    6. Presented the TSAPAC Texas Trophy Award to John Y. Ok, MD TSA Director for District 11 for having the highest percent of members contributing to the TSAPAC in 2023.
    7. Accepted and approved the Minutes of the TSA House of Delegates Meetings of September 8-9, 2022, as written.
    8. Presented the TSA Post-Humous Membership Award to Dr. Herman A. Barnett’s family.
    9. Presented the first START Grant Awards to Dr. Sataoshi Yamamoto for his project titled Mechanisms of Spinal Cord Stimulation-Induced Pain Relief and to Dr. Siddharth Dave for his project titled Vasopressor Outcomes in Spine Surgery (V-SPINE) Trial.
    10. Recognized Drs. Juan Cata and Dr. Vijaya Gottumukkala for their efforts and work in creating the START Grant.
    11. Presented resolutions from the Texas Speaker of the House recognizing two TSA resident members for their incredible achievement during this year’s TSA Resident Scholar Policy Rotation. Resolution No. 1279 was presented to Dr. Katharine E. Heffner and Resolution No. 1278 was presented to Dr. Niklas L. Glenesk.
    12. Presented the Ray Callas Outstanding Key Contact Award to Scott E. Kercheville, MD.
    13. Recognized Drs. David F. Gloyna and Evan G. Pivalizza as new recipients of the TSAPAC Sapphire Lifetime Donor Award.
    14. Recognized Thomas F. Rahlfs, MD previous Chair and Division Head at MD Anderson for his retirement on August 31, 2023. During his 3-decade career Dr. Rahlfs dedicated countless hours of service to the TSA and ASA. Thank you, Dr. Rahlfs.
    15. Accepted all items published on the consent calendar for information only.
    16. Approved that the president’s report going forward includes the names and composition of all ad-hoc committees in the society.
    17. Approved the dissolution of the Ad-Hoc Committee on Bringing the TSA & TAAA Together.
    18. Approved that the Ad-Hoc-Committee on the Opioid Crisis be dissolved.
    19. Approved dissolution of the Ad-Hoc Committee on Resident Involvement in Organized Medicine.
    20. Approved that the Liaisons for Legal and Legislative Services Committee be dissolved.
    21. Recognized the tremendous service rendered by Dr. George Williams this past year.
    22. Approved that the House take a moment to recognize Tina Haggard for her many years of commitment and service to this Society.
    23. Approved that in anticipation of the transition to a larger database and website hosting company an allocation be made of $25,000 from the Reserve Funds.
    24. Approved that the leaders of the Communications, Education, and Governmental Affairs Committees and the leaders of the Editorial and TSAPAC Boards be recognized for their hard work and dedication.
    25. Approved as amended that the Meetings Committee be dissolved, that an Ad-Hoc Committee be created by the President to determine the structure and function of a future committee that serves a role analogous to the ASA’s AMOC, and that the Bylaws Committee be charged with modifying the bylaws to accurately reflect these changes.
    26. Approved the President Elect’s committee appointments.
    27. Approved That Chris Bacak, Judy Garcia-Bigger, Jessica Shepherd, Claire Foster, Elizabeth Farley, Jasmine Owen and Clayton Devin be recognized for the valuable role they play in keeping the Society vibrant and strong.
    28. Approved the 2024 projected budget.
    29. Approved by substitution that an additional attempt at developing a new logo be undertaken, with professional help obtained, if necessary, with an adjusted fiscal impact of $5,000, and submission for consideration by the spring Board of Directors meeting.
    30. Recognized and applauded Joseph P. Naples, M.D. as the recipient of the 2024 DSA.
    31. Approved as amended revisions to the TSA Bylaws.
    32. Approved with comment that the Texas Society of Anesthesiologists House of Delegates approve the allocation of an annual budget of $25,000 specifically for digital advertisements to supplement, not replace our in-person advocacy. COMMENT: The reference committee recognized Dr. Chris Cook for all of his work on the Communications Committee.
    33. Disapproved that the Willliam H. King Award recipient become a voting GAC member.
    34. Approved that TSA create an official “resident representative” from each program to be on the Governmental Affairs Advisory panel.
    35. Approved that the @GovtAffairsTSA Twitter account be deleted.
    36. Approved as amended that the TSA President refer to a committee of the President’s choosing the task of drafting a TSA policy statement addressing workplace harassment using a pending ASA statement on the subject as its model.
    37. Disapproved that the President appoint an ad-hoc committee to study issues and submit recommendations for redefining the mission and composition of each of the GAC, Key Contact committee and TSAPAC Board.
    38. Approved that a taskforce of the president’s choosing be appointed to engage stakeholders to solidify anesthesiologists’ leadership role in triaging the need for the anesthesia care team.
    39. Referred recommendation that a mechanism be formalized whereby residents, who have little historical exposure to the president-elect, be allocated a defined number of seats on each committee that are assigned at the recommendation of the committee chair.
    40. Approved as amended that a new ad-hoc committee be formed with a charge to identify key positions in hospital systems, government, and independent advisory bodies and then develop a strategy for filling those positions with members of the TSA.
    41. Elected the following:
      • President-Elect
      • Secretary
      • Treasurer
      • Assistant Treasurer
      • ASA Delegates:
      • Place 1
      • Place 2
      • Place 6
      • Place 14
      • Place 16
      • Place 18
      • Place 19
      • Place 22
      • Place 25
      • Place 28
      • Place 29
      • ASA Alternate Delegates:
      • Place 1
      • Place 2
      • Place 3
      • Place 4
      • Place 5
      • Place 6
      • Place 7
      • Place 8
      • Place 9
      • Place 10
      • Place 11
      • Place 12
      • Place 13
      • Place 14
      • Place 15
      • Place 16
      • Place 17
      • Place 18
      • Place 19
      • Place 20
      • Place 21
      • Place 22
      • Place 23
      • Place 24
      • Place 25
      • Place 26
      • Place 27
      • Place 28
      • Place 29
      • Place 30
      • Amr E. Abouleish
      • Zachary S. Jones
      • Elizabeth Rebello
      • C. Nicholas Lee
      • Vijay Saluja
      • Vijaya Gottumukkala
      • Kristyn B. Ingram
      • David W. Mercier
      • Thomas H. Swygert
      • David E. Bryant
      • Michael R. Hicks
      • Deborah L. Plagenhoef
      • Carin A. Hagberg
      • Joe F. Bryan, II
      • Ramy Mankarious
      • Jose M. Soliz
      • Jeffrey S. Richards
      • Bracken S. Kolle
      • Zachary S. Jones
      • Stacey L. Allen
      • Russell K. McAllister
      • Christopher R. Cook
      • Kristina L. Goff
      • Mahammad Hussain
      • Xuan Tran Langridge
      • Scott S. Meril
      • James S. Guo
      • Andrew L. Zak
      • Radha Arunkumar
      • Rhashedah Edeoduru
      • Omonele O. Nwokolo
      • Michelle Z. Koehler
      • Jeffrey W. Steiner
      • Brandy M. Bergeron
      • Srikanth Sridhar
      • Austin D. Street
      • Stacy L. Norrell
      • Stephen A. Sarmiento
      • Brian D. Dewan
      • Christopher T. Miller
      • January Tsai
      • Anna M. Allred
      • Sandhya R. Vinta
      • Mark A. Margolis
      • Edward J. Prejean, III
    42. Approved that the RAAPM Ad Hoc Committee become a standing committee within the TSA to continue its important work as outlined in the mission statement included in Report 608.
    43. Referred recommendation that a system be established to designate revenue generated by the RAAPM Committee to be used for future RAAPM Committee initiatives including but not limited to: RAAPM scholarship fund for residents/fellows, ongoing reserve fund for future regional conferences, etc.
    44. Approved that the TSA fund travel expenses to WC meetings (not at the Annual Meeting) consistent with the level of the Alternate Director or President for any member.
    45. Expressed appreciation to the members of the Reference Committees, the TSA President, Speaker, Vice-Speaker, Chris Bacak and Jennifer Bacak.

Dr. Ray Callas accepting
the role of TMA President

At the ASA level, another TSA Past President, Dr. Pat Giam, is positioned to serve as the ASA President-elect next year and rise to the position of ASA President in the same year that the ASA Annual Meeting will be held in San Antonio (2025). Another TSA Past President, Dr. Crystal Wright, also serves as a quickly rising officer within the ASA and serves as a strong voice for Texas anesthesiologists at the national level. Other colleagues serve in important roles such as Dr. Sherif Zaafran, in his role as President of the Texas Medical Board, Dr. Tom Oliverson, in his role as a Texas State Representative, and Dr. Elizabeth Rebello, in her role on the Board of Directors of the Anesthesia Patient Safety Foundation. There are certainly many other rising leaders among our members, and I cannot name them all, but I feel it is important for our membership to be aware of the significant leadership roles that are filled by our members.

Another great example of leadership was recently recognized at the national level. On behalf of all of the TSA membership, I believe it is important to recognize TSA Past President, Dr. Tillmann Hein, who was awarded the 2024 ASA Bertram Coffer Award for excellence in advocacy. Those who know the work of Dr. Hein done on our behalf know that this award is very well-deserved. Kudos to Dr. Hein for the national recognition of his lifetime of hard work in advocacy.

As a member of the TSA, it is a privilege to get to interact with our former, current, and future leaders of this society. When you look at the history of the great leaders within the TSA, you see people who have made outstanding contributions at state and national levels. The leaders that I have mentioned will be the ones that we will look back upon and feel proud to have worked alongside in pursuing the goals of the TSA.

We are excited to bring you another issue of the Texas Society of Anesthesiologists Newsletter. I have previously noted that the history of anesthesiologists in Texas is rich with many important individuals who have been great examples of leadership. The “On the Shoulders of Giants: Legends of Texas Anesthesiology” series has recognized many of the examples of lessons in leadership exhibited among our colleagues from the past. For this edition of the TSA Newsletter, we introduce our 14th recipient of this prestigious honor, the late Dr. Prithvi Raj, who was a pioneer in pain medicine. Dr. Raj served as a mentor to many current leaders in the field of pain medicine, including Dr. Miles Day, who delivers a very moving tribute to his mentor. This series of tributes to past leaders in Texas anesthesiology is a wonderful way to commemorate our leaders from our rich history.

This edition of the TSA Newsletter also has many other features that should be of interest to our members. In this issue, we have the pleasure of having our current TSA President, Dr. Bhaskar Padakandla, detail his year of travels across our state emphasizing the importance of advocacy for our patients and our specialty. A series of three articles were inspired by the cardiopulmonary resuscitation and “Stop the Bleed” courses held at the Texas State Capitol and sponsored, taught, and overseen by our TSA members, staff, and close colleagues. Dr. Christopher Stephens presents a very nice article on the history of Emergency Medical Services and how it was developed by anesthesiologists. Longtime TSA friend and former EMS colleague of the late Dr. Charles Cowles, Detective Jason Mitchell, presents the history of the TSA’s Stop the Bleed program at the Texas State Capitol. Finally, Drs. John Zerwas and Tom Oliverson share their compelling stories of performing life-saving CPR at the Texas State Capitol while fulfilling their roles as Texas State Legislators.

Rounding out this edition, Drs. Stewart Caskey, Ben Vacula, and Tricia Meyer, PharmD offer a clinical update on promethazine hydrochloride and recommended precautions related to potentially devastating complication from its administration. A graduating resident, Dr. Collin Buerger, shares his experience of discovering passions that have reinvigorated him through his educational journey in medicine. Additionally, Drs. Harley Bordelon and Cory Russell offer a basic introduction to an important aspect of financial planning as it relates to young physicians. As always, our ASA Director, Dr. Scott Kercheville provides us an update on events that have occurred within the ASA. It is always important to have a good level of understanding of issues that affect our specialty and how the ASA is responding on our behalf.

I sincerely hope that you all enjoy reading this edition of the TSA Newsletter and I wish to thank the TSA staff members who worked hard to make it available for us. Special thanks to Chris Bacak, Judy Garcia-Bigger, and Tina Haggard for their contributions to producing the Newsletter. As always, we welcome our membership to contribute to the content of the TSA Newsletter. It is a great opportunity to share your expertise with our membership.

I wish you all a wonderful summer and hope to see many of you at this year’s TSA meeting September 5-8, 2024 at the JW Marriott Hill Country Resort and Spa in San Antonio.

Dr. Tillmann Hein accepting the 2024 ASA Bertram
Coffer Award for excellence in advocacy from
ASA President Dr. Ron Harter

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