Spring 2020

President's Address: Gino Somers

Gino Somers, MBBS, PhD, FRCPA

“No longer were there individual destinies; only a collective destiny, made of plague and emotions shared by all.”
Albert Camus, The Plague

From the Editor's Desk

David Parham, MD

Greetings to all fellow members of the Society for Pediatric Pathology! As your new Newsletter Editor, I am now ensconced in my home in Little Rock, waiting out the pandemic and pondering all the great things that are going on in our Society.

Committee Report: Education Committee

Sanda Alexandrescu, MD

At the Spring Meeting, the Education Committee approved the program for the Fall 2020 Meeting organized by Dr. Jessica Davis and Dr. Terry Morgan of OHSU in Portland, Oregon. The program will feature a Fanconi anemia symposium that will highlight the institution’s experience and will feature experts in the field. The perinatal symposium will be “New insights into the early detection of long-term health consequences of pregnancy”.

Finance Committee Update

Sarah Johnson-Welch, MD, Jennifer Black, MD

As of the Spring Meeting, the SPP had a stable financial position. At last report prior to recent market slide, the investment fund showed a balanced conservative position of 60% stocks and 35% bonds/5% cash and had produced enough income to make up for typical yearly spending deficits. 

Committee Report: Membership

Jordan Burghardt, Erin Rudzinski, MD

The SPP Membership Committee was relaunched at the 2019 SPP Spring Meeting in Arlington, Virginia. Since reforming under Dr. Erin Rudzinski as the Membership Chair, the committee has been focusing on three primary areas of engaging SPP members...

1. Recruitment of new SPP members (especially Medical Students, Residents, and Fellows)
2. Retention of existing SPP members (especially Fellows who are entering Practice)
3. Recognition of long-term SPP members

Currently, the Membership Committee is working on updating the SPP Member Needs Survey, which will be disseminated over the summer. We hope to use the Member Needs Survey data to identify gaps in services and utilize the data to provide new member benefits. In order to maximize participation, anyone who completes the SPP Member Needs Survey will automatically be entered into a raffle for a complimentary registration to an SPP Spring or Fall Meeting

Upon completion of the Member Needs Survey, the committee hopes to use the data to identify ways to improve member benefits and raise the profile of SPP within the pathology community. We look forward to receiving your feedback!

Jordan Burghardt, SPP Administrator
Erin Rudzinski, Chair
SPP Membership Committee

Awards Committee Update

Karen Chisholm, MD, PhD

The following awards were given at the spring 2020 meeting...

Perinatal Committee Update

Eumenia Costa Castro, MD

Save the Date! The SPP Perinatal Pathology Course has been rescheduled for April 9-11, 2021, in Chicago, Illinois.

From the Archive: SPP Newsletter, Summer 1995

Save the Date - Upcoming Events