In this bonus podcast episode, Dr. Steve Elias is joined by some of the faculty of the 10th Annual New York Venous Symposium, which is being held April 11-13, 2019.
Episode summary
Dubbed as one of the most interactive conferences in the vein world, the New York Venous Symposium is converging on the Big Apple again. With its cross-sectional following and diverse programming, nationally- and internationally-recognized venous experts, surgeons, MDs, physician assistants, and nurse practitioners will come together in one place, to dive into all things vein.
The free-flowing manner, noted Dr. Neil Khilnani, vascular and interventional radiologist of Weill Cornell Vein Treatment Center, allows participants to readily participate in conversations with faculty during the meeting—to even ask questions and receive answers. They've all cleared their schedules, said the faculty, and their only responsibility over the three days is to teach and share their experiences in a surprisingly intimate, yet robustly-attended event.
Dr. Joseph Raffeto, a vascular surgeon, commented that live case demonstrations are brought in as part of the program, occurring almost every hour. The patients talk about their problem and then their legs are scanned and physically examined.
Volunteers from the audience are pulled, and they give their ideas as to what they believe the pathology could be and what treatment options they would apply. Every patient has a different type of pathology. It could be deep venous disease, post-thrombotic syndrome, or any range of things.
"You don’t know what you’re going to get,” added Rafetto. “It’s always this fun thing because you’re trying to guess what’s going to be the pathology.”
Equality, chimed the Venous Symposium faculty, is ever-present in these explorations. Each participant, they agreed, is equal when it comes to discussion, that every discipline's strength is heard in the lively conversations that follow case presentations. What comes from it is an education in itself as the group learns other viewpoints.
The experts, whose expertise are also diverse, may find themselves in a debate too as they round out discussions with didactics, philosophy, and evidence on everything from avoiding sclerotherapy complications to how to remove a difficult-to-retrieve vena cava filter.
Such vocality from the audience and the experts, said the faculty, is not common at many conferences. But sharing in these ways, they added, promotes bonding.
“What it really comes down to is that we are one big family. We’re happy. We want to enjoy it. We want to have fun," said Raffeto. "And usually there is always some kind of dance at the end. Every evening we have great music.”
Listen to the 17-minute discussion above.
To learn more about the New York Venous Symposium visit www.venous-symposium.com. See you in New York, April 11-13.
Special Thanks to our Sponsor
This episode was made possible with support from NormaTec—a medical device company specializing in state-of-the-art compression therapy systems that are used to treat circulatory issues like lymphedema and venous insufficiency.
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