In this episode, Tom Varghese, MD, FACS, is joined by Brett Johnson, MD, and Clifford Ko, MD, FACS, from the American College of Surgeons (ACS). They discuss the recent article by Drs Johnson and Ko, “Evaluating Outcomes of Initial Site Visits Across American College of Surgeons Accreditation Programs,” in which the authors found that ACS accreditation identifies significant gaps in hospital quality, with only 61% of hospitals passing on their initial attempt. However, most ultimately succeed after remediation. These findings highlight that ACS accreditation both validates hospitals meeting rigorous standards and drives quality improvement in those that initially fall short.

Disclosure Information: Drs Varghese, speaker, has no relevant financial conflicts to disclose. Drs Johnson and Ko, speakers, are employees of the American College of Surgeons.

Learn more about the Journal of the American College of Surgeons, a monthly peer-reviewed journal publishing original contributions on all aspects of surgery, including scientific articles, collective reviews, experimental investigations, and more.

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In this episode, Tom Varghese, MD, FACS, is joined by Todd Heniford, MD, FACS, and Alexis Holland, MD, from the Carolinas Medical Center. They discuss the recent article by Drs Heniford and Holland, “Limited or Lasting: Is Preoperative Weight Loss as Part of Prehabilitation Maintained after Open Ventral Hernia Repair?” This study supports the implementation of preoperative optimization and weight loss before hernia surgery, which remains controversial. Long-term maintenance of preoperative weight loss before abdominal wall reconstruction is achievable and sustainable.

Disclosure Information: Drs Varghese and Holland have nothing to disclose. Dr Heniford is a surgical research grant recipient and receives speaking honoraria from WL Gore.

To earn 0.25 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™ for this episode of the JACS Operative Word Podcast, click here to register for the course and complete the evaluation. Listeners can earn CME credit for this podcast for up to 2 years after the original air date.

Learn more about the Journal of the American College of Surgeons, a monthly peer-reviewed journal publishing original contributions on all aspects of surgery, including scientific articles, collective reviews, experimental investigations, and more.

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In this episode, Tom Varghese, MD, FACS, is joined by Haytham Kaafarani, MD, MPH, FACS, and Vahe Panossian, MD, from the Department of Surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School. They discuss the recent article by Drs Kaafarani and Panossian, “Validation of Artificial Intelligence-Based POTTER Calculator in Emergency General Surgery Patients Undergoing Laparotomy: Prospective, Bi-Institutional Study.” This study found that POTTER accurately predicts mortality and postoperative complication, and the superior accuracy, user-friendliness, and interpretability of POTTER make it a useful bedside tool for preoperative counseling.

Disclosure Information: Drs Varghese and Panossian have nothing to disclose. Dr Kaafarani receives honoraria payments from UpToDate. The POTTER calculator is available online for free, and Dr Kaafarani has not been compensated for the development or ongoing use of the calculator.

To earn 0.25 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™ for this episode of the JACS Operative Word Podcast, click here to register for the course and complete the evaluation. Listeners can earn CME credit for this podcast for up to 2 years after the original air date.

Learn more about the Journal of the American College of Surgeons, a monthly peer-reviewed journal publishing original contributions on all aspects of surgery, including scientific articles, collective reviews, experimental investigations, and more.

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In this episode, Lillian Erdahl, MD, FACS, is joined by Judy Boughey, MD, FACS, from the Mayo Clinic Rochester Department of Surgery. They discuss Dr Boughey’s recent article, “American College of Surgeons Cancer Programs Annual Report from 2021 Participant User File.” This inaugural annual report from the National Cancer Database describes the 2021 adult participant user files (PUF) as a whole, as well as the PUFs for breast, colon, and pancreatic cancer in more detail. It summarizes new observations and recent trends of cancer diagnoses, patient demographics, and treatment trends.

Disclosure Information: Drs Erdahl has nothing to disclose. Dr Boughey receives funding paid to her institution from Eli Lilly and SymBioSis; sits on the Data Safety Monitoring Committee of CairnsSurgical; and has received honoraria from PER, PeerView, OncLive, EndoMag, and UpToDate.

To earn 0.25 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™ for this episode of the JACS Operative Word Podcast, click here to register for the course and complete the evaluation. Listeners can earn CME credit for this podcast for up to 2 years after the original air date.

Learn more about the Journal of the American College of Surgeons, a monthly peer-reviewed journal publishing original contributions on all aspects of surgery, including scientific articles, collective reviews, experimental investigations, and more.

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In this episode, Lillian Erdahl, MD, FACS, is joined by Peter C Minneci, MD, FACS, MHSc, from the Department of Surgery, Nemours Children’s Health, Delaware Valley. They discuss Dr Minneci’s recent article, “Cost-Effectiveness of Nonoperative Management vs Upfront Laparoscopic Appendectomy for Pediatric Uncomplicated Appendicitis Over 1 Year,” in which the authors found that cost-effectiveness of management of pediatric appendicitis is sensitive to changes in utilities achieved by nonoperative management. Further studies should investigate reasons for treatment failure and the importance of shared decision-making in choosing treatment.

Disclosure Information: Drs Erdahl and Minneci have nothing to disclose. This research was funded by the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI ID CER-1507-31325) and the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (grant UL1TR001070).

CME for this episode will be available on January 31, 2025. To earn 0.25 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™ for this episode of the JACS Operative Word Podcast, click here to register for the course and complete the evaluation. Listeners can earn CME credit for this podcast for up to 2 years after the original air date.

Learn more about the Journal of the American College of Surgeons, a monthly peer-reviewed journal publishing original contributions on all aspects of surgery, including scientific articles, collective reviews, experimental investigations, and more.

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In this episode, Lillian Erdahl, MD, FACS, is joined by Fatemeh Shojaeian, MD, MPH, from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. They discuss Dr Shojaeian’s recent article, “Refractory and Recurrent Idiopathic Granulomatous Mastitis Treatment: Adaptive, Randomized Clinical Trial,” in which the authors found that, for resistant or relapsing patients with idiopathic granulomatous mastitis, combining methotrexate and corticosteroids offers a promising strategy. This integration of disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs with corticosteroids not only reduces the necessity for high steroid doses but also effectively alleviates associated side effects.

Disclosure Information: Drs Erdahl and Shojaeian have nothing to disclose.

To earn 0.25 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™ for this episode of the JACS Operative Word Podcast, click here to register for the course and complete the evaluation. Listeners can earn CME credit for this podcast for up to 2 years after the original air date.

Learn more about the Journal of the American College of Surgeons, a monthly peer-reviewed journal publishing original contributions on all aspects of surgery, including scientific articles, collective reviews, experimental investigations, and more.

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In this episode, Lillian Erdahl, MD, FACS, is joined by Jessica Ching, MD, from the Baylor College of Medicine. They discuss Dr Ching’s recent article, “Protective Effects of Authenticity Against Depression, Suicide, and Burnout among Surgeons,” in which the authors found that authenticity may protect against burnout, depression, and suicide, pointing to a vital intervention opportunity. This research highlights the importance of cultivating a culture that prioritizes mental health to foster a resilient, fulfilled surgical community.

Disclosure Information: Drs Erdahl and Ching have nothing to disclose.

To earn 0.25 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™ for this episode of the JACS Operative Word Podcast, click here to register for the course and complete the evaluation. Listeners can earn CME credit for this podcast for up to 2 years after the original air date.

Learn more about the Journal of the American College of Surgeons, a monthly peer-reviewed journal publishing original contributions on all aspects of surgery, including scientific articles, collective reviews, experimental investigations, and more.

#JACSOperativeWord