June 2006 | Vol. 24, No. 6

Chapter News

By Shelly Burns, RVT LPN
Chair, Chapters Committee
Tel. 330-375-3288; Email: burns@summa-health.org

ONKIVT Spring Meeting Date Changed to June 8

The Ohio, Northern Kentucky & Indiana Vascular Technologists (ONKIVT) Affiliated Chapter now will hold their spring meeting at the Christ Hospital on June 8. Speaker is Dr. Joseph Giglia, who will discuss Laparoscopic Aortic Surgery. 2 CMEs will be granted. Contact Dave Parlato at 513-585-1439 for more information.

Houston Society of Noninvasive Vascular Technology

The Houston Society of Noninvasive Vascular Technology (HSNIVT) Affiliated Chapter will hold a meeting on June 14 from 6-8:30 PM at the Alvin Community College at The Nolan Ryan Center in Alvin, Texas. Speaker is Frank Miele, President of Pegasus Lectures, Inc. The topic is Color Doppler: Fundamentals, Controls, and Practical Applications. This will be an excellent way to prepare to take the vascular registry exam. Dinner will be provided by GE Medical. Contact Kathleen Garcia at 832-721-8631 or Kathleen.garcia1@jsc.nasa.gov for more information.

Northern Ohio Vascular Association

The 2006 Spring Conference of the Northern Ohio Vascular Association (NOVA) was held May 6th at the Briarwood Golf Club in Broadview Heights, OH. There was a wide array of presentations including: Dr. David Rollins talk on the role of ultrasound in endovenous ablation procedures; Gene Doverspike provided un update on issues that both SVU and the vascular ultrasound profession are facing, the work being done on these fronts, especially regarding reimbursement cuts planned for 2007 due to the Deficit Reduction Act; Dr. Mark Goldberg presented a very interesting talk on the utilization of ultrasound for planning and follow-up of Sub-intimal angioplasty procedures; Angela Jagan presented several interesting case studies; Dr. Teresa Carman spoke about the abdominal aorta, its branches and the use of ultrasound in evaluating these vessels for disease, and in medical management of the patient; and Dr. James Gosset presented a talk titled "Vascular Ultrasound Diagnostic Testing and Patient Treatment". He challenged the audience to go the extra mile and stretch the envelope to obtain as much information as possible during our studies and to educate our physicians on the usefulness of ultrasound in diagnosing and management of patients with vascular disease. The NOVA membership was asked for input on the possibility of a joint NOVA/NEOUS meeting in 2007. The fall 2006 NOVA conference will be held Saturday, Nov. 4, at the Southwest General Hospital conference center.

North Jersey Vascular Association

The North Jersey Vascular Association (NJVA) chapter meeting was held on May 6 at St. Clare's Medical Center. Thanks to Dr. Cliff Araki for hosting our meeting. A continental breakfast and lunch were provided by our wonderful and supportive vendors. Our attendance keeps growing. We had over 100 attendees at our meeting with 15 new members. This brings our membership to 160 members. All of our speakers received an excellent response and the diverse topics were of great interest. Kudos to our two student presenters who did a great job on the case studies of ‘pseudo-aneurysm post cardiac catherization’ and ‘deep venous thrombosis’. During our business meeting the Deficit Reduction Act law was discussed and its negative effects on our field as of Jan. 1, 2007. The importance of joining SVU and supporting the Government Relations Committee’s efforts were also stressed. Based on the extra work that our GR Committee is doing, it was agreed that the Chapter as a whole would send a donation to SVU in support of their hard work.

Outstanding Chapter Individual Nominations

Congratulations to Teri Polenchar from NEPVC, Kathleen Garcia from HSNIVT, and Kathy Ziegler from ONKIVT for being nominated for the Chapters Outstanding Individual Award for 2006! We are lucky to have such fine chapter people supporting our organization. The winner will be announced on June 3 at the Awards ceremony at SVU’s 2006 Annual Conference in Philadelphia.