AAST's mission of inclusion and diversity is accomplished through the following:
- Creating, welcoming, and actively promoting diversity within its membership and leadership
- Ensuring transparency and equity in all decisions related to scholarships, membership, and leadership positions
- Actively promoting diversity in programming and participation in the Annual Scientific Meeting
- Initiation of educational efforts aimed at eliminating health inequities and increasing cultural awareness within the profession of Trauma and Acute Care Surgery
- Advocating for issues that affect disadvantaged patient populations
- Striving to dismantle systemic inequities that influence the work of the organization
- Providing career development opportunities for surgeon scholars and leaders from diverse backgrounds
- Further developing diverse representation on the editorial boards of both AAST journals, TSACO and JTACS.
DEI Grant Announcement
CONGRATULATIONS to the AAST’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee as one of the awarded recipients for the 2021-2022 inaugural Board of Regents Innovative Grant for DEI & Anti-Racism on behalf of the American College of Surgeons. Under the exemplary leadership of Dr. Karen Brasel, the $50,000 grant awarded by the College will be matched by the AAST and the co-sponsoring societies including the American College of Surgeons Committee on Trauma [ACS COT] and the Pediatric Trauma Society [PTS]. The specific aims of the grant include the following:
Aim 1: Increase interest of racially/ethnically underrepresented middle and high school students in surgery, trauma, and medicine by providing early exposure and hands-on experience
Aim 2: Establish a strategic mentoring and professional development program for racially/ethnically underrepresented middle and high school students interested in surgery, trauma, and medicine
Aim 3: Develop a pipeline of under-represented racial/ethnic minority students interested in surgery, trauma, and medicine
DEI Call for Volunteers
The AAST’S DEI Committee is seeking volunteers to be a part of this committee to help aid, drive, and execute important upcoming projects including the ACS Board of Regents Innovative Grant for DEI & Anti-Racism. The sub-committees that members can volunteer for include the below. If you would like to be a committee member but do not have a preference on which sub-committee you are placed on, that is fine.
- Communication and Education
- Liaison to the Communication committee
- Developing content for Cutting Edge, Tools for Acute Care Surgery (TACS), and social media
- DEI Essay Contest for medical students, residents, and fellows
- Virtual Grand Rounds- cultural complications
- Submitting Program Proposals for the annual meeting
- Communication and Advocacy
- Publicize DEI accomplishments- DEI committee, members, organization
- Highlight/spotlight members from URM groups- cross post with SBAS, LSS, SAAS, AWS
- Rapid communication response to DEI-related events
- Outreach
- Seek outside grants, programs, etc. that can help aide in AAST’s DEI initiatives
- *DEI Innovative grant (announcement after 11/2)
- Mentorship
- Visiting Professorships- SBAS, LSS, SAAS
- Outreach to other societies
- Pathway to leadership formal mentorship program
- Research
- Liaison to the MICT committee
- Research demographics of the organization- membership, and leadership
- Creation of Speakers Resource List
- DEI Research Grant/Scholarship (health disparities/health inequities) – Research and Education Committee
Please contact Sharon Gautschy at sgautschy@aast.org if you wish to be placed on the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee.
Visiting Professorship: Call for Applicatons
Professor Application-Deadline: May 25th, 2022
Description:
To provide an active AAST and SBAS member who is a faculty member at the rank of Assistant or Associate Professor and is within 15 years of their faculty appointment the opportunity to serve as a Visiting Professor for the Department of Surgery at a host institution. The host site application will open soon.
Purpose:
To promote the careers of early to mid-career AAST-SBAS members and recognize academic excellence.
Eligibility:
The awardee must be an active member in good standing with AAST (Associate or Fellow) and SBAS and be an Assistant Professor or Associate Professor of Surgery within 15 years of their faculty appointment.
Requirements for application:
- Letter of interest with a summary of past participation and involvement in AAST and SBAS
- Curriculum vitae
- Letter of recommendation from their Department Chair
- Provide a one-page summary of the area of expertise and examples of PowerPoint “grand rounds type” presentations previously delivered
Visiting Professor Responsibilities:
- Coordinate with the host institution to determine the optimal time for the visit.
- Work with the host institution to plan the visit including travel and accommodation reservations.
- Submit an expense form with appropriate backup receipts to the AAST-SBAS Visiting Professorship Committee within 30 days after the visit.
- Submit a report to the AAST-SBAS Visiting Professorship Committee summarizing the visit within 30 days of the visit that includes information about the experience, thoughts on the process, and the overall program.
- Attend the AAST and SBAS Annual Conferences during the year of the visit.
Application Process:
The applicant must submit all of the above-required materials in one PDF to aast@aast.org
Host Institution-Deadline: May 25th, 2022
Description:
To provide an active AAST and SBAS member who is a faculty member at the rank of Assistant Professor or Associate Professor and within 15 years of their faculty appointment the opportunity to serve as a Visiting Professor for the Department of Surgery at a host institution. The AAST and SBAS will sponsor the Visiting Professor by providing a stipend of up to $2000 to cover travel and accommodation expenses. The host institution should consider providing the Visiting Professor with an honorarium.
Purpose:
To promote the careers of early to mid-career AAST-SBAS members and recognize academic excellence.
Host Site Department of Surgery Responsibilities:
- Sponsor the Visiting Professorship program and coordinate a schedule for the two-day visit.
- Select a presentation topic provided by the Visiting Professor
- Coordinate with the Visiting Professor to plan travel and accommodation reservations as well as other details of arrangements for the visit.
- Provide any comments to AAST and SBAS within 30 days of hosting the AAST-SBAS Visiting Professor.
- Consider providing the Visiting Professor with an honorarium.
How to Apply:
The host institution must submit a letter of interest from the Chair of the Department of Surgery and a draft itinerary for the Visiting Professor's visit to AAST at aast@aast.org by May 25th, 2022.
The 2022 AAST-SBAS Visiting Professor and host institution will be announced virtually by June 27, 2022