Message from Chapter President, James Zidar
In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, we have transitioned the leadership of the chapter. First, a formal thank you to Bill Abernathy for his incredible 3 years as Chapter president that ended last month with the 2020 ACC Virtual meeting. Under his tenure, we have had unprecedented success with our annual meeting enthusiasm and attendance.
Unfortunately, COVID-19 has turned all our lives upside down. Things we took for granted just 3 months ago are now taboo. We did not have our standard spring annual Councilors meeting, due to the social distancing rules during the pandemic. Nonetheless, we will continue to forge ahead.
As an introduction, I have been an ACC member for 30 years, having spent 20 years at Duke, and the last ten with UNC/Rex Healthcare. My chapter involvement has evolved in the last decade from a regional chapter Councilor to Treasurer for the past 6 years. I am honored and privileged to be voted president, and will do all in my power to enhance our position across the state. We will need to fill the void in the Treasurer position soon.
I hope all of you are adjusting to this “new normal” of video visits on EPIC, and other EMRs, and phone visits. Our cath lab volume remains low, but we hope to gradually restart elective cases sometime in the next month, with appropriate precautions, of course. While the known disease burden in North Carolina is modest compared to many states, we already have over 320 deaths and 9,000 cases reported, as of April 27th. Charlotte has clearly been the most affected area in North Carolina. In the Triangle region, we have slowly climbed to a modest plateau among the 3 health systems (UNC, Duke, and Wake Med) which are handling the case load well. We all need more PPE and rapid testing capabilities. Meanwhile, we have patients who will continue to need cardiovascular care, with or without infection.
The ACC remains the premier cardiovascular educational and practice resource. The ACCs COVID-19 Hub HERE contains a great deal of useful information for cardiovascular specialists practicing in the midst of the epidemic.
As a chapter, we are planning a Virtual conference on “Cardiology During the COVID Pandemic” with our international partner, the ACC chapter from Chile. We hope to present this afternoon symposium on a Monday in early June. Details to follow in the next few days. In addition, the 2020 NC/SC ACC Joint Chapter Meeting is still planned to take place at Kiawah Island Golf Resort, September 25-27. In this COVID-19 world, it is difficult to predict if the meeting will change in the next few months.
Please let us know how the North Carolina ACC can support you and where we can make a difference in your practice. We welcome your ideas and suggestions as we move beyond this COVID-19 epidemic. Until then, I encourage all of you to work smart, protect yourself, your patients and your family; and cherish the extra hours at home with the ones you love most.
Jpz
James P. Zidar, MD, FACC, FSCAI
Clinical Professor of Medicine, UNC Health Systems
UNC Health Systems Physician-in-Chief, Heart & Vascular
Corporate Chief of Cardiology, Rex Healthcare
President, American College of Cardiology – North Carolina Chapter