Themes of Drama, Heroism & New Challenges Threaded President’s & Keynote Addresses at ACR Convergence 2022

The ending of the story, he said, may be surprising.

“It’s never the case that things go back exactly the way they were,” he said. “In fact, it’s always the case that we go to a new order, a new way of life.”

When all is said and done, history will give us all mixed reviews on how the pandemic has been handled. The “science was phenomenal,” he said, with the characterization of the virus and the development of a vaccine done on a pace that’s never been seen before.

But, he said, “I think history will be fairly harsh with us about our failure to have learned the lessons of history.” Elected leaders didn’t heed lessons from previous pandemics—lessons contained in seminal works like The Plague by Albert Camus, he said.

“For these times, we must all heed the call to adventure, and you have,” Dr. Verghese said. “We must find the tools and weapons never thought of before, and you’re doing that. We must have courage; we must have faith; we must tell our story. For this too shall pass.”

President’s Address

Dr. Saag

In his address, Dr. Saag said the rheumatology field rose to the challenge during the pandemic.

“The ACR tackled COVID head-on,” he said, adding that he was “indebted to my predecessors,” referring to past presidents Ellen Gravallese, MD, and David Karp, MD, PhD.

“We became a trusted national resource at a time critical in history,” Dr. Saag said.

While COVID-19 continues to pose special risks to immunocompromised patients, he said, it is beginning to feel as though the field is entering a phase beyond the pandemic, which brings new challenges.

“We now see non-clinical work as less constrained by time and space,” he said. “Many of our administrative and research staff and faculty, particularly in our academic, industry and government centers, view at least partially remote work as a key job benefit. While this no doubt improves work-life balance for some, it’s led to a stifling of the water-cooler discussion, which has challenged our ability to innovate.”

The Great Resignation has brought on a need for hiring quality new staff, “who have been very tough to find,” he said.

The ACR is situating itself to meet these challenges, he said. The structure of Board of Directors meetings now encourages “more intimate discussions.” And new ACR membership models will allow for small teams of healthcare providers to join. Live meetings will continue to be complemented by virtual options to encourage maximum attendance.