CAP@Your Service – Special Residents Issue – Spring 2007
We had a great day in San Diego on March 24 at the College of American Pathologists Residents Forum (RF). Just before the start of the USCAP Annual Meeting, over 100
CAP Junior Members gathered in America’s Finest City to share ideas, ask questions, hear from today’s leaders in pathology training, and take action to shape their own future. If you were not able to attend, here’s just a brief overview of what happened.
To begin the meeting, Drs. Charles Abbott and Michelle Barry educated and entertained a packed room on the ins-and-outs of getting your first job as a pathologist. For those of us trying to sort out the options and understand the process, this session alone would have made the entire day worthwhile.
But then, as the Residents Forum got underway, CAP President Thomas M. Sodeman, MD, FCAP, gave an inspiring address about the future of pathology and the need to prepare for it during our training as residents. Dr. Sodeman’s talk was followed by an update from the Junior Member representing the College’s newly formed Graduate Medical Education Committee, the Residents Forum’s Delegate to the AMA Resident and Fellow Section, and the CAP Foundation—who presented the Spring 2007 Young Leader Awards. The morning ended with a talk by the College’s own Sandra Grear, Vice President of Membership and Professional Development, on how to become an effective communicator.
We then recessed for an extended lunch where Delegates had the opportunity to refresh and relax while discussing the issues faced by today’s pathology trainees. The ideas generated during these discussions were presented by representative members of each group when the Delegates reconvened for the afternoon session. The formal business for the day was the presentation and voting on Resolutions RF-S07-1 and RF-S07-3. Both resolutions generated lively discussion and were finally referred to the RF Executive Committee. The Residents Forum ended with what has become a popular highlight, the Town Hall session. The College’s leadership and honored guests from the American Board of Pathology, Association of Program Chairs, and Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education Residency Review Committee for Pathology’s Residency Review Committee fielded any and all questions (some not-so-easy!) put to them by the residents.
As Chair of the Residents Forum, I know I have a biased perspective when evaluating the RF’s activities. So it was extremely heartening for me to hear from numerous residents, including three of my fellow trainees at Vanderbilt, about how excellent this recent Residents Forum meeting was in San Diego. If you can find your way to Chicago in September to make it to our next gathering, I know you won’t be disappointed. Whatever your area of interest, whatever career path you hope to follow, you will find someone and something of value when you join the world’s largest gathering of pathology trainees.
In the meantime, in San Diego we announced the rollout of the College’s new Web site for residents, appropriately titled “CAP For Residents.” The site is intended to be not only a source of information, but also an online gathering place for pathology trainees. It’s a work in progress, but the discussion has already started with a “pilot” discussion board. We’re currently testing this new service with residents who serve as Delegates to the Residents Forum and we expect to expand this new service to all residents very soon. So point your browser to residents.cap.org, and watch for news on how and when you can join the conversation. I’ll be looking for you online!
Samuel K. Caughron, MD
Chair of the Residents Forum
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