March 2016 Newsletter

A SHORT NOTE FROM THE NEW PRESIDENT

From all of us at The Missouri Perfusion Society, we welcome and thank our loyal members, new members, soon-to-be new members and sponsors! My name is Clint Johnson and it is with great excitement to announce my position as President of the Missouri Perfusion Society, effective January 1, 2016.  I am looking forward to the new year, becoming more acquainted with each of you, and continuing the growth and strength of our great society.

A bit about me…My wife, Leigh Ann, and I are proud parents of our three year old twin daughters (Piper & Miranda) and our three month old son (Austin).  I work for HEME Management based out of Lincoln, NE.  My home base is Liberty Hospital in Liberty, Missouri where my wife, the Lead Cardiothoracic Physician Assistant, and I started the heart program over six years ago.

A fabulous year ahead…more frequent newsletters, a new more user friendly website that will serve a vital role in the society’s operation, student scholarship selection and of course, the grand-daddy of them all, our 21st Annual Scientific Meeting to be held in St. Louis at the Sheraton Clayton Plaza Hotel on Friday June 3rd and Saturday June 4th!

MEMBERSHIP

Dues for the current year (membership running from January 1, 2016 – December 31, 2016) are payable on our website as of January 1, 2016. If you have not paid for your 2016 membership dues or would like to join our society, please go to our website missouriperfusion.com and navigate to the “dashboard.”

From here find the “Membership Dues” tab, returning members click “Renew Membership” button and new members click “Join Now” button. Once you select your desired membership option, the page will display your selected membership status in red (awaiting payment), then to complete your membership please go ahead and pay your invoice displayed. At this time you are also encouraged to register and receive a discounted price for the 21st Annual Scientific Meeting within the same area of the website.

If at any time you should have questions, there is a “Knowledge Base” tab within the dashboard that serves as a guide to website navigation, how to pay by mail, or of course you are welcome to contact us directly.

PATRICK D. LONGENECKER STUDENT SCHOLARSHIP

We are pleased to support the Patrick Dewitt Longenecker Perfusion Student Scholarship in honor and memory of the beloved son of Robert and Mary Longenecker for the tenth year running. Applicants must be a perfusion student currently enrolled in a CAAHEP accredited school of cardiovascular perfusion. Candidates will submit an original scientific abstract, which presents in scientific case report form, a clinical experience which pertains to cardiovascular perfusion.

The recipient of the Longenecker award will be expected to present their entry at the Annual Missouri Perfusion Society meeting in St. Louis.  The scholarship does include round trip airfare to St. Louis, hotel accommodations and a monetary award of $1,500.00. Please encourage eligible candidates to apply directly to The Missouri Perfusion Society website, missouriperfusion.com (“Our Programs”-“Patrick D. Longenecker Student Scholarship”-“Scholarship Application”). Deadline for submission is March 21, 2016.

This information has been made available to all CAAHEP program directors via several email notices as well as a personal phone call to all seventeen schools and is also displayed on Perfmail. To date, I have had a notable amount of interest and six scholarship submissions. MPS members are eligible to view all entries and vote within our new website, the specific details to follow in our next newsletter.

PERTINENT MEMBER NEWS

It was voted during the June 2015 meeting in Kansas City to donate $2,000 (contribution level: Honors Circle) to The AmSECT Foundation. It was decided to donate on a ‘restricted’ level as to specify exactly the terms and conditions under which the use of the proceeds are to be conducted. As a group, we decided the total donated amount should be distributed to each perfusion school for educational supplies. We were the first state society to contribute to the Foundation and in return we were awarded with a thank you letter and plaque.

The 21st Annual Scientific Meeting will be held in St. Louis June 3-4, 2016 at the Sheraton Clayton Plaza Hotel, 7730 Bonhomme Ave, and blocked room rate of $129/night (for both Thursday and Friday nights). Chen Gao and Andrea Berra are the co-chairmen for this coming meeting. Please make contact through our website if you would like to volunteer yourself or others as speakers, or if you have any suggestions.

Our current Officers and Board of Directors: Clint Johnson (President), Heather Harris (Vice President), Verna Nelson (Treasurer), Patrick Allibone (Secretary), Brad Smith, Andrea Berra, Gloria Mitten, Chen Gao, and Ryan McClellan.

Currently, we have nine total board positions filled…we would love to bring this total to eleven members (need to maintain an odd number), so please contact me if interested. Board member requirements include attendance to our annual meeting and one teleconference meeting in October.

IN CLOSING

Please HELP!! It is our goal to have contact with as many local Perfusionists as possible. I strongly encourage anyone that would like to be placed on The Missouri Perfusion Society’s email list to email me directly with your contact information. A copy of this newsletter will also be available on our website.

We please ask you to visit https://missouriperfusion.com/ to pay dues and register for the June meeting. You MUST be preregistered on the website prior to the meeting as this is the only way ABCP points will be awarded with our new system. In selecting your membership contribution level, please keep in mind your ‘sustaining’ membership status is VERY important to our society in continuing to offer student scholarships, low cost educational opportunities and as always improving quality of care towards our patient population!

Clint Johnson

The Missouri Perfusion Society

clint@heme1.com