Message From the Residents Council Chair
It has been a great honor to serve as the Residents Council chair this year. We've seen tremendous growth and are excited to continue working to represent each program as best as possible both within the United States and abroad.
We expanded our participation into the newly established Residents and Fellows Forum (RFF), which allows for post-graduate involvement as Fellows, as well as international involvement from programs abroad. We're thrilled to report that the Residents Council Report is well underway – we've completed our survey administration and heard from 52 programs. Did you know that almost three-quarters of programs surveyed take 24-hour call, and more than half take at-home call? More details will be released as we analyze and report on this remarkable data. Our thanks to all who participated.
Medical Students Day was a great success, with a record turnout of students. Medical students' interest in pursuing a career in plastic surgery continues to exponentially grow, and we're extremely thankful for the time our faculty surgeons and members dedicate to making this day possible. Our Recruitment of Accomplished & Diverse Medical Student Applicants into Plastic Surgery (ROADMAPS) working group has made this possible by continuing to show support for students early in their educational journey.
The Professional Resource Opportunities in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery Education and Leadership (PROPEL) mentorship program continues to thrive. Due to the record-breaking number of applications this year, we had to adapt a more-selective model for pairing our mentees and mentors. We also have a new Journal Club-styled curriculum to guide group discussions about the importance of mentorship in shaping one's career.
We're also excited to share our international collaboration with PLASTAUK, which is a U.K.-based association of residents that boasts more than 2,500 members around the world.
Finally, we welcome the new Residents Council Vice Chair, Liz Moroni, MD, chief resident at the University of Pittsburgh. Liz has served on the Residents Council for two years, and we're excited to have her in this new role. Liz obtained her Bachelor of Science degree from Cornell University, and her MD and Master of Healthcare Administration degree from Georgetown University, where she was elected into the Gold Humanism Honor Society and Upsilon Phi Delta Healthcare Administration Honor Society. At Pitt, Liz has pioneered the Competency-Based Time-Variable Resident Education model – and she's the first U.S. plastic surgery graduate to complete their training in five clinical years. During her residency, she also dedicated a year to research, contributing to microsurgical and peripheral nerve research. Next year, she will continue her training in hand and microsurgery at the world-renown Buncke Clinic for fellowship. I'm excited to welcome Liz into this new role. As a lifetime colleague and friend, I would like to share my personal gratitude to Dr. Moroni for all that she's doing to push our field forward in search of new horizons.
We're looking forward to another productive and inspiring year with you.
Dr. Abbate Ford is ASPS Residents Council chair and PGY-6 in the Harvard Mass General Brigham Integrated Plastic Surgery Program.