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The Michigan Chapter of the American College of Surgeons (MCACS) is not among the first of the ACS chapters organized, but with a statewide membership of some 1500 Fellows strong, it is one of the largest.
About 1916, when the College itself was very young, a group was formed in Chicago for the sole function of collecting and distributing information on clinics in Chicago hospitals. This group may be regarded as a distinct precursor to the first chapter. Old records indicate that Dr. Charles A. L. Reed of Cincinnati, a founding Fellow of the College, had organized a "chapter" in Cincinnati before the College had fully developed the chapter concept. He espoused the value of local groups in a recorded meeting held on August 27, 1922. About that time, the College endorsed the formation of local groups. The uniform name of the "chapter" was to be the designation of each group to be founded by Fellows of the College under the banner of the state or city.
A major impetus for new chapter formation occurred in 1949 when the Board of Governors recorded their strong support for the establishment of local chapters. The Regents endorsed this action and Governors took the initiative in the formation of new chapters. Highly significant Governor participation in chapter activities occurs to this date.
Enthusiasm for a chapter in Michigan took solid form in the early 1950s at the height of the era of new chapter organization, and if any one person is to be given credit for the early success of MCACS, it is Dr. Frederic A. Coller. A publication in a 1954 issue of the Bulletin lists 51 chapters of the College including the
"Michigan Chapter President: Frederick A. Coller, Ann Arbor. Secretary-Treasurer: John Reid Brown, Detroit"
Most of the 51 chapters were state chapters, one chapter for one state, and Michigan fell into that majority category. Michigan is a state with a relatively large population, but only a single chapter and that helps to account for the large size of the chapter.
The jewel of the MCACS, essentially since its inception, has been the Resident Surgeons Day where young men and women of exceptional quality, residents in surgical programs in Michigan, present research papers. Resident participation similar to the Michigan Chapter was also a feature of meetings in the early days of at least four other chapters, West Virginia, New Jersey, Chicago, and Brooklyn-Long Island. Papers to be presented at the MCACS are selected from a larger number submitted and for years this selection has been made by a formally constituted Program Committee. Other functions of the chapter including interaction with the ACS are carried out by the Chapter Council. In recent years, an Issues Committee that reviews a variety of current concerns to surgeons in Michigan and reports to the Council has been active.
The Annual Meeting of the MCACS is a two-day affair, a Thursday and Friday, usually early in May and hosted by Fellows in various parts of the state. For many years, residents presenting papers competed for a single award, the Frederick A. Coller Award and the entire Resident Surgeons Day was informally known as the "Coller Competition." Over the years, various modifications took place including the presentation of more than a single Coller Award.Other early awards recognized the best trauma paper, given under the auspices of the Michigan Committee on Trauma, and the best cancer research paper designated the Danto Cancer Award and given under the auspices of the Cancer Liaison State Chair. More recent awards include the transplant award and the Emerick Szilagyi Vascualar Award. The most recent award, the Alexander J. Walt Award, which may select from all papers presented similar to the Coller Award, was established in recognition of Dr. Alexander Walt, who served as Chairman of the Board of Regents and President of the ACS. The award is now given in Dr. Walt's memory.
In addition to the resident competition, a program is given devoted to carefully selected presentations arranged by the Program Committee and designed to appeal to Fellows and residents in areas of topical interest. In recent years, some additional programs following the Friday sessions and organized as hands-on postgraduate courses in new surgical methods have been very successful.
By tradition, the sitting President of the ACS is invited to every Annual Meeting of the MCACS as a major participant in the program. It is very seldom that the President does not attend and then only in situations such as a meeting of the Board of Regents which has on infrequent occasion been called at that time. The President generally serves as Chief Judge for the resident competition, gives "Remarks" to the residents at the Thursday luncheon, and briefly makes some comments at the banquet. Then, he meets at an open forum with the Fellows at the Friday morning breakfast.
The MCACS, organized in the early 1950s was, and remains, a group of Michigan surgeons and Fellows of the of the College who meet in camaraderie to enhance the science and art of surgery. They encourage those who are the future of surgery, our surgical residents. A number of traditions, both major and minor, have grown up with the chapter. The most recent tradition of the chapter, clearly in the latter category, is the addition of a Chapter Historian and an Associate Historian to the Council!
Allen Silbergleit, MD, PhD, FACS
Chapter Historian
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