June 14, 2015
Dear friends and colleagues,
We have recently concluded the 16th Congress of the International Society of Holter and Noninvasive Electrocardiology in Lyon, France. Hosted by our fellow Board member, Pierre Chevalier, the meeting was a great success.
During this meeting, I was honored to be elected to the position of President of our Society. The other leadership positions were also filled, and I am fortunate to have such an able and accomplished executive committee.
From the accompanying minutes as provided by our Secretary, Richard Verrier, you can see that much was discussed and much was decided. Please feel free to contact me directly if you have any additional thoughts or comments. I would also like to thank all those who attended and all those who have volunteered for various future roles as noted in the minutes.
First, I would like to convey to some of our colleagues who could not attend because of family medical emergencies that our thoughts are with them. We wish a speedy recovery.
In my address to the Congress, I outlined four initiatives that I would like to vigorously pursue. It is my hope that these accomplishments will leave the Society in a strong and well-defined position in a complex medical environment that is dominated by invasive and interventional procedures. Nonetheless, noninvasive electrophysiology is the backbone of all other diagnostic and therapeutic procedures, and our Society, with its renowned international leaders, is prepared to continue its historical role as an educational leader and a forum for scientific collaboration.
The first of our goals will be the completion of the joint ISHNE-HRS consensus statement on ambulatory ECG and external cardiac monitoring. This important and timely document was thoughtfully initiated during my predecessor’s, Ryszard Pitrowicz, stewardship of the organization, and is well on the way to completion and joint publication in our Annals and in Heart Rhythm. Many of you have made important contributions to this effort, and a steering committee has been formed to assume the challenges of finalizing the document for review by our Board of Trustees and submission to HRS. Niraj Varma and I have been tasked with bringing this challenging project to closure. Iwona Cygankiewicz has been instrumental in putting all the moving parts together.
The next item on our agenda is the resumption of the Virtual Symposia. Internet education had become synonymous with ISHNE, and was a critical source of society revenue. The sponsorship environment has changed in the past few years, but with the determined efforts of Derek Exner and Sergio Dubner, we are very close to launching our newest AF Symposium. We should have an update in the coming weeks.
As the face of the organization naturally evolves, it has become increasingly important to engage young leaders in noninvasive EP and invite them to become more involved in the ISHNE organization, including writing and editorial responsibilities, Board membership, and educational positions. With election of 3 dynamic and accomplished young stars this year, and others in the recent past, we are well on our way to a new generation taking the Society’s reigns.
Finally, I would like to launch a brand new and exciting project, the ISHNE ECG University. The concept is to provide on-line fundamental ECG education, a role particularly well suited for our Society given the expertise on our Board. There is a dearth of quality educational tools available on-line, despite a very evident deterioration of skills by a variety of clinicians. We hope to attract a wide audience of enthusiastic students including primary care MDs, hospitalists, medical and other specialty trainees, anesthesiologists, intensivists and allied health professionals. We are actively negotiating to secure industry sponsorship to help fund this effort and the Society. Adrian Baranchuk has stepped forward and has committed to use his experience and enormous expertise to help guide this initiative. It is hoped that by linking this tool to ISHNE, we will enhance brand recognition and drive traffic to our website; engage a large clinical audience from whom prospective membership can be drawn, attendance at our meetings encouraged or readership of our journal enticed; and provide a stable and renewable revenue stream. Many others of you will become involved in this project as well.
I will do my best to pursue what is best for ISHNE and its membership, but can only make progress with an active and engaged Board and membership. Thank you all for your efforts.
Very sincerely yours,
Jonathan S. Steinberg, MD
