Message from the President...
In the previous Presidential message conveyed from our Association of VA Surgeons (AVAS) Executive Council, we announced that “The AVAS condemns racism and discrimination in any form and will never tolerate social injustice towards other human-beings. We cannot remain silent bystanders and must advocate for diversity, equity, and inclusion as it aligns with the core mission of AVAS.”
In this message I am accordingly pleased to announce our action to accomplish this mission. The AVAS has formed a Diversity and Inclusion committee. The AVAS is committed to improving patient care, education and research in surgery within the VA healthcare system. To achieve that goal we have to advocate for diversification and promotion of equity. The mission of the newly formed Diversity and Inclusion Committee is to ensure diverse representation in membership, governance and programming for the AVAS and keep matters of diversity and inclusion front and center during regular deliberations and decision making of the Executive Council. The committee will examine the current status of diversity and minority representation in AVAS across its spectrum of activities. The eventual goal is to develop programs to promote diversity, equity and inclusion within the AVAS and provide an avenue for safe and meaningful dialogue to discuss issues of discrimination on the basis of race, ethnicity, religion, gender, age, sexual orientation, financial or social status.
The AVAS Executive Committee is also happy to announce that Dr. Shipra Arya will chair the new Diversity and Inclusion committee and serve as an integral member of the Executive Committee. Dr. Arya is the Section Chief of Vascular Surgery at the VA Palo Alto and is a leader in surgical outcomes research. We thank Dr. Arya for her leadership of this important new initiative.
Your AVAS society remains in place to support you and your efforts. Thank you for your continued input and feedback. We all look forward to seeing each other in Pittsburgh in April 2021!
Alan Dardik, MD PhD
AVAS President
In this message I am accordingly pleased to announce our action to accomplish this mission. The AVAS has formed a Diversity and Inclusion committee. The AVAS is committed to improving patient care, education and research in surgery within the VA healthcare system. To achieve that goal we have to advocate for diversification and promotion of equity. The mission of the newly formed Diversity and Inclusion Committee is to ensure diverse representation in membership, governance and programming for the AVAS and keep matters of diversity and inclusion front and center during regular deliberations and decision making of the Executive Council. The committee will examine the current status of diversity and minority representation in AVAS across its spectrum of activities. The eventual goal is to develop programs to promote diversity, equity and inclusion within the AVAS and provide an avenue for safe and meaningful dialogue to discuss issues of discrimination on the basis of race, ethnicity, religion, gender, age, sexual orientation, financial or social status.
The AVAS Executive Committee is also happy to announce that Dr. Shipra Arya will chair the new Diversity and Inclusion committee and serve as an integral member of the Executive Committee. Dr. Arya is the Section Chief of Vascular Surgery at the VA Palo Alto and is a leader in surgical outcomes research. We thank Dr. Arya for her leadership of this important new initiative.
Your AVAS society remains in place to support you and your efforts. Thank you for your continued input and feedback. We all look forward to seeing each other in Pittsburgh in April 2021!
Alan Dardik, MD PhD
AVAS President
Society Affiliation
JAMA Surgery is pleased to be the official publication for the Association of VA Surgeons.