Letter from the President
Dear Friends,
It is my real pleasure to address you as the fifth President of our society with now more than 120 members representing the Belgian Cardio-Thoracic Surgical Community in Belgium.
Our Association was founded in November 1995 and has been very successful so far under the firm and open minded leadership of Wim Daenen, Pierre Rocmans, Jean-Louis Le Clerc, and Paul Van Schil and with the support of every member of the previous Board. A new and younger Board has been installed trying very hard to continue the excellent work done by the founders of our Association.
Over these years, several changes have taken place in our Association. Our representatives in the College of Cardiac Pathology have resigned and the Contract of Research with the Ministry of Health for data transmission was not prolonged for the year 2001. The previous Quality Control Committee has been replaced by a new Database Committee. J.M. Marnette and all the members of his Committee have restarted the data collection. I would like to urge all Belgian cardiac surgical centers to participate and to transfer the missing data for the years 2000 and 2001. A 100% complete database is the strongest tool for our Association in the future contacts with the Ministry of Health and Social Affairs! A contract has been signed with the Statistical Institute at the University Center of Limburg for data analysis. Finally, a new Professional Committee has been created under the leadership of Francis Wellens. Members of his committee will represent our Association in the RIZIV/INAMI and in other professional organisations (VBS/GBS, UEMS).
In this Newsletter, you will find more information on our new Board and Committees, the membership, the BELSURG and CTSnet websites, the relationship between BACTS and other organizations, the BACTS session in Knokke, the 7th Congress on Cardio-thoracic Surgery, the RIZIV/INAMI Accreditation, and the European Board of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgeons.
I am looking forward to a productive year as your President.
Christiaan Van Kerrebroeck, M.D.
President BACTS 2001 - 2002
The Board and the Committees
A new Board of Directors (2001-2004) has been elected during the last General Assembly of our Society held in Brussels on 10 November 2001. Christiaan Van Kerrebroeck (Genk) was elected as President (2001-2002), Philippe Noirhomme (Bruxelles) as Vice-President (2001-2002), and Francis Wellens (Aalst) as second Vice-President (2001-2002). During the first Board Meeting on 5 December 2001, Dirk Van Raemdonck (Leuven) was re-elected as Secretary (2001-2004) and Francis Wellens (Aalst) as Treasurer (2001-2004). The other members of the Board are Matteo Cappello (Bruxelles), Jean-Olivier Defraigne (Liège), Jacques Goldstein (Brussel), Luc Haenen (Bonheiden), Bart Meyns (Leuven), Inez Rodrigus (Antwerpen), Yves Van Belleghem (Gent), and Patrick Van Ruyssevelt (Jolimont). You can find further details on how to contact one of the Board members in the enclosed 2002 Membership Directory or online.
Our Society is composed of different working committees: Accreditation (chair: Inez Rodrigus), Board of Directors (chair: Christiaan Van Kerrebroeck), Database (chair: Jean-Marc Marnette), Membership (chair: Luc Haenen), Peer Review (chair: Christiaan Van Kerrebroeck), Professional (chair: Francis Wellens), and Scientific (chair: Yves Van Belleghem). You can also find more information on the activities and the complete roster of the different committees within our Society in the enclosed 2002 Membership Directory or online at "www.bacts.org/committee/BACTS".
Members and application for membership
We welcome the following members that have been approved during the General Assembly on 10 November 2001 in the following categories: Honorary: Peter Goldstraw (London); Cardio-Thoracic: Guy Dekoster (Liège); Cardiac: Thierry Bové (Brussel), Ivo Deblier (Edegem), Erik de Worm (Antwerpen), Peter Schraverus (Gilly); Thoracic: Jacek Poniewierski (Edegem); Junior: Philippe Nafteux (Leuven), Leen Van Garsse (Leuven). Our Society is now having a total of 125 members (99 active members, 11 junior members, 1 senior member and 14 honorary members). A complete listing of all members can be viewed in the enclosed 2002 Membership Directory. The membership fee is fixed to 50,00 euro for active members and 25,00 euro for junior members. You will be invited to pay your annual fee via a separate mailing from the treasurer in the coming months.
Colleagues working in the field of cardiovascular or thoracic surgery (as well as fellows in training) are invited to become (junior) members of our Society. An application form for membership will be mailed to the candidate upon request to the secretariat (Hilde Pelsers, BACTS Secretariat, Department of Thoracic Surgery, University Hospital Gasthuisberg, Herestraat 49, B-3000 Leuven; phone +32-16-34 68 22, fax: +32-16-34 68 21; E-mail: hilde.pelsers@uzleuven.be) or you can print this form directly. The completed application form should be sent to Dr L. Haenen, Chairman Membership Committee BACTS, Department of Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery, Imelda Hospital, Imeldalaan 9, B-2820 Bonheiden. The deadline for receipt is fixed on 1 September 2002 for approval during the next General Assembly on 16 November 2002.
The co-chairman of the Professional Committee, Prof Dr T. Lerut (Leuven) has proposed to create a new category of CORRESPONDING members in order to be able to approve the membership application of other surgeons INTERESTED in the field of Cardiac or Thoracic Surgery. A proposal to change article 5 of the bylaws of our Association will be discussed during the next General Assembly on 16 November 2002.
In this mailing you will also find a separate sheet to fill in your private and professional addresses. Please send this form back to our administrative secretary in the enclosed envelope. This is the only way to keep our membership list updated!
Websites
Our Association is participating in two website initiatives:
Information on our Association is updated weekly on the website "www.bacts.org". Dirk Van Raemdonck (Leuven) was re-elected by the Board as the organizational webmaster. This website is part of the larger worldwide Cardio-Thoracic Surgery Network (www.ctsnet.org). This is the place to visit whenever you are looking for information on cardio-thoracic surgery worldwide. You can see a list of all participating organizations (www.ctsnet.org/organizations), the online journals (www.ctsnet.org/journals), international meetings (www.ctsnet.org/events) or you can look up information on any cardio-thoracic surgeon around the world (www.ctsnet.org/surgeons).
The Board of Directors during its meeting on 13 December 2000 has agreed to participate in the Belgian Surgical website (BELSURG), a joint initiative of 12 Belgian surgical organizations. Dirk Van Raemdonck (Leuven) has been elected by the Board as the organizational webmaster. This is the place to visit (www.belsurg.org) whenever you are looking for information on surgery in Belgium. You can see a list of all participating organizations (www.belsurg.org/organisations.html), the abstracts of papers published in the Acta Chirurgica Belgica (www.belsurg.org/journal.html), national surgical meetings (www.belsurg.org/events.html) or you can look up information on any surgeon in Belgium (www.belsurg.org/surgeons.html).
Enclosed in this newsletter you will find a print-out of your personal homepage within CTSNet and BELSURG, including your personal User ID and password identical for both websites. I would like to urge you to check and to regularly update your personal information online in both websites. For CTSnet you have to go to: "www.ctsnet.org/members/index.cfm" and login. For the BELSURG website go to : "www.belsurg.org/belsurg.html", login and click on "Change Personal Data". You are invited to also complete private data that will be visible only to other surgical colleagues with a BELSURG user ID and login or you can choose to make this information available to the public. If you do not already have your ID picture on your homepages, you are welcome to send or mail (carine.vandeweyer@bacts.org) us a recent (digital) photograph that will be scanned into your personal homepage. If you are planning to attend one of the International meetings (AATS, EACTS, STS) or the 3rd Belgian Surgical Week in Knokke (2-4 May 2002), you can also visit the CTSnet booth or the BELSURG booth, respectively to have your digital picture taken directly.
If you have any difficulties in accessing your homepage, you are welcome to contact our BACTS web editorial officer, Carine Vandeweyer, Nachtegaalstraat 24, B-3560 Meldert (Lummen) (phone +32 (499) 125718); E-mail: carine.vandeweyer@bacts.org).
Relationship between BACTS and other organisations
CTSnet
Dirk Van Raemdonck is the Belgian representative in the editorial Board of CTSnet. The chairman of this Board is Dr Peter Greene (Baltimore, Maryland).
BESIC
Dirk Van Raemdonck is the BACTS representative (and the Secretary) in the Belgian Surgical Internet Committee (BESIC), the editorial Board of the BELSURG website. The President of BESIC is Dr Dirk Devriendt (Kortrijk). The yearly financial contribution to participate in this project is 1 euro/member.
PSBS/BBC/UPCB
Francis Wellens is the BACTS representative in the Board of the Professional Society of Belgian Surgeons (PSBS/BBC/UPCB). This Society is part of the larger Group of Belgian Specialists (VBS/GBS). The President of this Society is Prof Dr J.A. Gruwez (Heverlee).
UEMS
A new separate "Section of Cardio-Thoracic Surgery" has been approved by the Board of the "European Union of Medical Specialists" (UEMS) at its October 2001 meeting. The application to create a "Division of Thoracic Surgery" (not an independent specialist section) within the "Section of Surgery" was also approved! Therefore, the situation for Thoracic Surgery is now somewhat complicated and cooperation between both bodies will be necessary for the good of the speciality (see also: "www.ctsnet.org/doc/6199"). The Board of BACTS is currently still waiting for a request to send a representative to both the Section of Cardio-Thoracic Surgery and the Division of Thoracic Surgery within the UEMS. During its first meeting on 5 December 2001, the new Board of BACTS has elected Francis Wellens and Toni Lerut (chairman and co-chairman of the BACTS Professional Committee, respectively) as the cardiac and the thoracic representative in the UEMS, respectively.
KVBMG/ARSMB
The founders of our Association in 1995 have decided to become a member of the "Royal Society of Belgian Medical Associations" (KVBMG/ARSMB). Therefore the official, registered address of our Association is: Ringlaan 138A Avenue Circulaire, B-1180 Brussel/Bruxelles. This Society groups several medical and surgical Scientific Organizations and distributes their official journals (Acta Medica Belgica) to libraries all over the world. Yearly, the Acta Medica Belgica Prize is awarded by this Society for the 2 best papers published in one of the ACTA journals. The current President of this Society is Prof Dr G. Stalpaert (Winksele). Our Association is represented by the President and first Vice-President. The 2002 membership contribution of BACTS was fixed to 125,00 euro during the General Assembly of KVBMG/ARSMB on 16 March 2002.
RBSS/KBGH/SRBC
Our Association has previously been contacted by the Board of the Royal Belgian Society for Surgery (RBSS/KBGH/SRBC) proposing an agreement between both organizations. The BACTS will be recognized as the only scientific and professional representative for cardiac and thoracic surgery in Belgium. One representative will be invited to the meetings of each others Board. On the other hand, the Acta Chirurgica Belgica will become the official journal of the BACTS. In this way, the abstracts of the yearly Congress on Cardio-Thoracic Surgery and papers by our members will be published in this journal. Further talks between Dr L. Proot (Secretary-General RBSS) and our Board will take place in the coming months to finalize this agreement.
Joint BACTS-BSVS session during the 3rd Belgian Surgical Week
A mini-symposium on "Surgery of the Thoracic Aorta" will take place during this year's 3rd Belgian Surgical Week organized by the Royal Belgian Society for Surgery on Friday, 3 May 2002 from 9.00 to 11.00 AM in the Casino in Knokke. This session is a joint initiative of the Belgian Society for Vascular Surgery (BSVS) and the BACTS. You may find more information on the programme and the speakers online. The final programme of this 3rd Belgian Surgical Week can be downloaded from "www.belsurg.org" and is also enclosed in this mailing. You can register online via Medicongress (www.medicongress.com).
7th Congress on Cardio-Thoracic Surgery
The 7th Congress on Cardio-Thoracic Surgery will take place on Saturday, 16 November 2002 at the Sodehotel-Woluwe, Avenue Mounier 5, B-1200 Bruxelles. This meeting is open to members and non-members. The scientific programme this year includes featured abstracts and a state of the art lecture by an invited speaker.
You are already invited to send your abstracts to Dr Y. Van Belleghem, Chairman of the Scientific Committee BACTS, Department of Cardiac Surgery, University Hospital Gent, De Pintelaan 185, B-9000 Gent. You will receive a call for abstracts for this year's meeting through a separate mailing in May. The deadline for receipt of the abstract is fixed on 1 July 2002.
This year's invited speaker will be a cardiac surgeon. The Board has approved the proposal of the Scientific Committee to contact Dr Francis FONTAN from Bordeaux, France.
Accreditation by the RIZIV/INAMI
Information on Accreditation by the RIZIV/INAMI of our National (BACTS) and other International Cardio-Thoracic Surgical meetings (EACTS-ESTS-AATS-STS-ESCVS) has been updated and is available online. You will find a copy of this document enclosed in this mailing.
During its last meeting, the Board of BACTS has decided to centralize any request for Accreditation. We therefore would like to ask you to send all necessary information (date - title - programme) on international cardio-thoracic meetings that you have attended directly to Dr Y. Van Belleghem, Chairman of the Scientific Committee BACTS (yves.vanbelleghem@rug.ac.be). He will then forward your request for Accreditation to the RIZIV/INAMI.
The European Board of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgeons
In 1996 the European Board of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgeons (EBTCS) was founded in order to establish common standards for thoracic and cardiovascular surgery in Europe. The primary goal was the recognition by the European Union of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery as a monospeciality. This Board is lead by representatives of 3 European Societies: the European Association for Cardio-Thoracic Surgery (EACTS), the European Society for CardioVascular Surgery (ESCVS), and the European Society of Thoracic Surgeons (ESTS). You will found more information on EBTCS at "www.ctsnet.org/committee/eacts/185".
Surgeons accredited by the Board will receive a diploma recognizing them as Fellow of EBTCS giving them the right to put the suffix FETCS behind their name.
This year's cardiovascular examinations will be organized in Helsinki on Thursday 27 and Friday 28 June 2002, preceding the 2002 ESCVS (www.escvs.org) annual meeting. The thoracic examinations will be organized in Istanbul on Monday 28 and Tuesday 29 October 2002 immediately following the ESTS (www.ests.org) annual meeting. Candidates for examinations must send an application form to the office of the EBTCS before 1 June 2002 (see also: www.ebtcs.org).
Further information on the Regulations and Application is available online or can be requested from the following address: The European Board of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgeons, P.O. Box 2023, 1990 AA Velserbroek, The Netherlands (phone +31-255 520 950; fax: +31-255 523 353; e-mail: ebtcs@wxs.nl).
Dirk Van Raemdonck, M.D.
Secretary BACTS 2001 - 2004