Dr. Kathryn Glas elected president of the SCA

Kathryn “Kathy” Glas, MD, MBA, a professor and the Ronald K. Baker Endowed Chair in Anesthesiology at the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Tucson, was elected president of the Society of Cardiovascular Anesthesiologists. Dr. Glas’ two-year term began in May.

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“It is my great honor to lead this society that has given me so much since I first attended as a fellow in 1997,” Dr. Glas said. “My goal is to secure the success of the society for many years to come through dedicated focus on strategic planning for the future, including development of our teams and use of our new leadership organization structure to offer longitudinal growth opportunities for anyone interested in serving the society.”

Dr. Glas served as president elect of the SCA from May 2021 until her presidency commenced. She has held several roles with the SCA, including as an elected member of the nominating committee, founding vice chair of the cardiothoracic program director committee, workshop and problem-based learning discussions chair, program vice chair and scientific sessions chair. She also served as an elected member of the board of directors from 2015-2021.

“As president, my priorities for the next two years are to use our 45th anniversary as a society as a springboard toward planning success into the next 45 years, and beyond,” Dr. Glas said. She includes member engagement, research, international collaboration and diversity as part of these priorities.

Dr. Glas is also the president of the Association of Cardiac Anesthesiologists. The group, which is limited to sixty active members, was founded in 1985 for the purpose of exchanging expert knowledge and mutual education regarding the specialty practice of cardiac anesthesiology. While many members of this association are also leaders in the SCA, this is the first time the same person has held the position of president in both organizations.

Dr. Glas, who said she considers herself a clinician educator first and foremost, said her scholarly work over the years has focused on ensuring colleagues have the knowledge they need to safely and effectively provide patient care. “The focus for most of my career was on guidelines around perioperative echocardiography, including epiaortic and epicardial imaging. More recently, I am focusing on the critical role teamwork and effective communication plays in optimizing patient care. I have moved my focus to educating physicians about implicit bias and how it impacts team success and patient care. I am working with groups across the country publishing on this topic.”

According to their website, the SCA is an “international organization of health care professionals committed to excellence and leadership in providing excellent cardiovascular and thoracic patient care through education and research.”