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Copyright © 2007, American Paraplegia Society American Paraplegia Society Highlights of the 52nd Annual Meeting | ||||
Last September, American Paraplegia Society held the last of many annual meetings at the Riviera Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada. The upcoming 53rd Annual Meeting will be held at an exciting new venue, the Gaylord Palms Hotel and Resort in Orlando, Florida, August 27–29, 2007. The 2008 meeting will also be held at this venue. On September 6, 2006, APS honored recipients of its annual awards: the Excellence Award and two awards of Special Recognition. The society also honored the recipient of the Ernest Bors Award for Scientific Development, which is administered by the Journal of Spinal Cord Medicine, as well as the invited presenters of the Donald Munro Lecture, the James J Peters Memorial Lecture, and the Keynote Address. | ||||
J. Paul Thomas received special recognition for his dedicated support of spinal cord medicine. APS Past President Todd Linsenmeyer, MD, honored Mr. Thomas with the following remarks: “The American Paraplegia Society is very pleased to present J. Paul Thomas with a Special Recognition Award. First, a few words about Paul's achievements. His involvement with SCI medicine began in the early 1970s when he and Dr. John Young implemented the Model SCI System project here in the United States. As all of you know, the model systems project continues to produce a tremendous amount of research, education and resources for SCI healthcare providers and consumers alike. He was recognized with an ASIA Lifetime achievement Award in 1994 for his many years of work with the Model Systems. For many, that would be the completion of a very rewarding career. But not for Paul… Because of his years of involvement with clinicians and researchers in the spinal cord field, Paul acquired a remarkable grasp of what constituted good care for patients with SCI. He had a vision for making SCI medicine evidence based. He was hired by the Paralyzed Veterans of America (PVA) as a consultant to develop this vision. It is very fitting that this award be given to him here at our last meeting at the Rivera Hotel. Because it was here in 1994 that he and Ken Parsons were sitting beside the pool at our American Paraplegia Society Annual Conference and came up with the idea of a consortium to develop evidence-based guidelines for the practice of spinal cord medicine. After the meeting, Paul returned to Washington and discussed the idea with the PVA, who agreed to sponsor this endeavor. A month or so later, the first meeting of the newly formed Steering Committee was held in Washington DC and The SCI Consortium was developed. So what has happened since then? Paul's knowledge base, wide ranging circle of contacts, and most importantly, leadership, have allowed the SCI Consortium to grow and flourish. The consortium is now composed of 13 organizations. Under Paul's direction, 6 evidence-based guidelines for health care providers and 7 consumer guidelines have been developed. These guidelines have been in very high demand. At last count, which was several years ago, there had been more than 700,000 printed/downloaded copies distributed. Just as impressive is the fact that these guidelines have been downloaded in 70 different countries. Some of you may not know, but Paul officially retired from the PVA last spring. And what is the key to Paul's success? Ken Parsons said it well at Paul's retirement dinner. He quoted from Jim Collins book, “From Good to Great.” Paul has always demonstrated “Level Five Leadership.” The definition of level five leadership is doing everything necessary for the success of the organization without seeking any praise for one's self. All who know Paul have witnessed him bestowing praise on others instead of basking in it himself. There are few talented leaders who are truly “level five.” But those are the best leaders. They get the most done because we all want to follow them! We give our deepest most heartfelt thanks to J. Paul Thomas for all he has done, not only for the field of SCI medicine. The American Paraplegia Society is very pleased to present J Paul Thomas with a Special Recognition Award.” | ||||
Vivian Beyda, DrPH, received special acknowledgment for more than 20 years of service to the professional organizations of APS, AASCIN, and AASCIPSW. These organizations have sponsored years of successful educational meetings in a collegial, multidisciplinary environment, largely due to Dr. Beyda's tireless support. Her management and administrative skills enabled United Spinal Association to implement the vision of Jim Peters, and have facilitated the research and educational endeavors of its professional societies. Dr. Beyda currently serves as associate executive director of United Spinal Association's department of research and education. | ||||
The Favorite Child* Lauri Yablick, PhD Brace yourselves. One of the startling developmental experiences of the youngest child is the dawning realization of the existence of siblings. Interlopers. Lesser beings certainly, but undeniably present and—horribly—beloved. The betrayal of their sudden arrival is further magnified by review of family albums, revealing that they've been there all along, smiling in pointed paper hats, brazenly enjoying your cake at parties you were too small to remember. So it is with Vivian Beyda, our sister organizations, and AASCIPSW. Beyda has been there for us always, present at our birth and participating in every milestone we've experienced along the way. She has nurtured us and fought with us, remembers our past, celebrates our present and plans for our future. “She's our Queen Bee, our matriarch, our anticipatory visionary,” says Lester Butt, who has worked extensively with Beyda throughout his tenure on various committees and our Board of Directors. “Our time together has been most special to me, replete with challenges, joy, deep respect, and caring. I cannot think of AASCIPSW without thinking of her.” Beyda first came to Eastern Paralyzed Veterans Association (now United Spinal Association) in 1986 as the Director for Research and Education. One of her first major projects included participation in the AASCIPSW founding meetings, and she has been with us ever since. “She grew up with AASCIPSW,” recalls Helen Bosshart, a charter member of the association. “Her first meeting was with our Board of Directors. She loves this association and believes strongly in what we do and what we strive to be.” Beyda remembers our early days affectionately. “The first programs for the Las Vegas conferences were photocopied. They were educational, with a great focus on having a good time. They've grown so much in size and complexity as the associations developed a more stable membership and attracted all of the top professionals.” Other members offered similar memories and sentiment. We are hers and she is ours, and it's a bit of a shock to realize how much more there is, not only to her life, but even to her role at United Spinal. “I'm responsible for managing the associations and other educational and research programs,” Beyda says. In other words, what she does for us she also does for the American Association of Spinal Cord Injury Nurses and the American Paraplegia Society. And that still doesn't capture the scope of her responsibilities. “United Spinal has contributed nearly $60 million dollars to various research and educational activities. Of that, over $20 million has been for the three associations.” “The three associations have very different personalities, partly because of the different professions. The psychologists and social workers are more engaged in the process.” We are her favorite, she tells me, echoing Bosshart's observation. “I grew up with you.” Geography and Culture She may have grown up with us in one sense, but Beyda was hardly green when she came to United Spinal.“I started out in the healthcare field when I was in high school, working on a project for the New York Philanthropic League,” she remembers. “It was an organization that catered to children with physical and developmental disabilities. I learned new things about myself in that role; I was peripatetic and had to slow down. I enjoyed contributing and felt comfortable.” “I never had a real career plan and was never wedded to any particular course.” Beyda trained as a physical therapist in New York and then made her way to Berkeley, California, to complete a master's degree in public health just when things were getting exciting out there. Bosshart has become great friends with Beyda, and was the unrivaled source of juicy tidbits. “Did you know Vivian loves hash pipes?” she asked. Why no, no I didn't. That has to be Berkeley. Beyda later went off to Pittsburgh for her doctorate in public health and has done extensive work internationally, first as a physical therapist, and later in family planning, nutrition and blindness prevention. Her professional travel has taken her to Peru, Haiti, Israel, and much of Latin America. “I would have liked to continue the international work, but I left it for the advance degrees and lost contacts. Various other opportunities intervened, and I followed what unfolded.” She has not exactly neglected her love of travel, vacationing throughout Europe and the United States, China, Australia, Thailand and back to Israel. But New York is home, and she takes it with her everywhere. Stan Ducharme has also spent a lot of time with Beyda in his assorted AASCIPSW roles. “She is a New Yorker in every way,” he observes. “She loves to jaywalk, and dart into oncoming traffic. She walks so fast no one can keep up. As strong as she is, Vivian has a soft side, and is a very sensitive and caring person.” The heart beneath the crusty exterior falls under the heading of Worst-Kept Secrets. “She can be a tiger on the outside, always with tenderness on the inside,” Butt says. “You always know where you stand with her.” And from Bosshart: “She's really a pussycat; her bark is much worse than her bite. She's one of the warmest, most caring and sincere people I know.” “I've mellowed through the years,” Beyda acknowledges. “I was tough to get along with early on. With all organizations there can be a tug of war between the Board and the administrative staff.” The uncommon stability of the principals in AASCIPSW and United Spinal has permitted the development of a healthy family, with enough time to learn one another's idiosyncrasies and use our differences to strengthen and unite rather than divide. “Over the years we have established a more symbiotic relationship; we had growing pains, but we learned a lot in the process.” Beyda also insisted on acknowledging the United Spinal staff. “We keep a sense of humor as we do serious work. I couldn't do half of what I do without the professionalism of the staff, and we would not have been nearly as successful without their contributions.” More on Mellow “One thing the administrative staff has learned to consider is that this is our profession, but the association members are all volunteers.” Although Beyda says this to explain her more relaxed attitude in recent years, her own history as a volunteer reveals where her high standards came from in the first place.Beyda traveled to Peru as a physical therapy volunteer following an earthquake in the 1970s, and to Israel after the Yom Kippur war. As her career in healthcare developed, her volunteer activities shifted, but community service in some form has always found a spot on her overflowing calendar. These days she helps out with an agricultural fair in Connecticut and the New York City opera. “So much has been given to me,” she says, “I like to be able to pay some back.” “Vivian brings energy, devotion, and loyalty to her position,” Butt says, and it's fair to say she brings the same qualities to her volunteerism and to her family. One of five sisters, her extended family of nieces and nephews, grandnieces and grandnephews, is large and close. She loves to cook, she'll walk anywhere in any weather and, at least in the presence of a corrupting influence, she can be a shopping fool. As our liaison to the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF), Stan Ducharme has attended enough meetings with Beyda in Tucson to find that the desert melts the edges off even this most seasoned New Yorker. “One of the little rituals we enjoy is visiting the University of Arizona telescope and planetarium each evening to look at the planets and skies over Tucson,” he says. “We walk the campus in the morning, and we've shared many memorable times.” Onward Beyda worked closely with long-time Executive Director James Peters from the time she started with United Spinal until his unexpected death in 2002. The loss rocked the organization, and was a personal one for Beyda. “Jim was such a strong presence and practical visionary,” she remembers. “He knew how to get things done.”She has her own visions for our future, rooted in the development she has nurtured for nearly twenty years. “I'd like to see the associations expand into new activities. There are more educational materials that can be developed, manuals and clinical practice guidelines. We'd like to develop an “Ask the Experts” section on the United Spinal website, with members from the three associations providing a substantial resource.” If Beyda has any intention of leaving us anytime soon she didn't let on during this interview, but it is likely that she has more years behind her at United Spinal than those to come. Because she was with us during our most formative years, her influence will remain powerful long after she chooses to follow whatever opportunity tempts her in a new direction. She has established some lifelong friendships among our membership, and may just have room for a few more. Lauri Yablick, PhD, is with Southwest Neuropsychology Associates in Tucson, Arizona. | ||||
Vernon W. H. Lin, MD, PhD, received the Excellence Award for his nationally recognized leadership in SCI medicine. Dr. Lin's background includes degrees in mechanical and biomedical engineering, as well as medicine, giving him a broad perspective on the current and future directions of the field of spinal cord medicine. At the VA Long Beach Health Care System (VALBHS), Dr. Lin, who is board certified in PM&R and spinal cord medicine, serves as Director of the Spinal Cord Institute, the Functional Magnetic Stimulation Laboratory, and the Spinal Cord Regeneration Laboratory. He is the Director of the Spinal Cord Medicine Residency program at the University of California, Irvine. As Associate Professor in Residence at VALBHS and the University of California, Irvine, Dr. Lin is involved in clinical care, education, administration, and research initiatives, as well as in medical publishing. In addition to numerous published abstracts, articles, and book chapters Dr. Lin is Editor-in-Chief of a highly regarded text, Spinal Cord Medicine: Principles and Practice, published by Demos Publications. Dr. Lin is active in the educational programs of American Paraplegia Society, American Spinal Injury Association, and the GME and CME Committees of the VALBS, and lends his expertise as a peer reviewer to NIH, the VA and a range of medical and scientific journals. | ||||
William Donovan, MD, presented his invited lecture “Spinal Cord Injury–Past, Present, and Future,” to an enthusiastic audience of clinicians and researchers. Dr. Donovan traced the history of spinal injury within a framework of medical and technological advances, and cataloged the array of promising avenues of research. The article based on his Donald Munro Lecture appears in this issue of The Journal of Spinal Cord Medicine. | ||||
Elysia G. James, BA, was awarded the prestigious Ernest Bors Award for Scientific Development for her paper, “Involvement of Peripheral Adenosine A2 Receptors in Adenosine A1 Receptor Mediated Recovery of Respiratory Motor Function Following Upper Cervical Spinal Cord Hemisection,” which she presented at a special session. Her paper was published in J Spinal Cord Med. 2006:29(1). This promising young investigator shared authorship with Kwaku Nantwi, PhD. | ||||
The James J Peters Memorial Lecture honors Jim Peters, former Executive Director and advocate for people with SCI, who died in 2002. This year's invited lecturer was William A. Bauman, MD, who focused his talk on the span of SCI research that was Jim's major accomplishment. | ||||
Jonathan R. Wolpaw, MD, an expert on disorders of the nervous system, presented cutting edge research on brain-computer interfaces as a means of restoring communication and movement to individuals with spinal cord injury. Of Interest to SCI Professionals 2007
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Footnotes *This tribute by AASCIPSW was reprinted from SCI Psychosocial Process. 2006;18(3). | ||||
Delivers Keynote Address
