The anatomy of a meeting: Reflections on #ACR22
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I just got back from Philadelphia and ACR Convergence 2022, and let me start by saying how glad I am that I attended. I met and canvassed the Healio Rheumatology Peer Board members, as well as a large number of friends and professional colleagues, on what they thought about the meeting in an effort to describe what worked for them, as well as what may have missed the mark.
My interviewees ranged from the old pros who know the inner workings of medical meetings, as many were organizers in years past, to the newbies who are just now checking out what the grandest live meeting in rheumatology is all about. My comments aren’t data-driven but more “notes from the field.” Before anyone takes umbrage with my comments, let me express my respect and gratitude to the organizing committee, for I know personally what is involved in meeting planning — having chaired the ACR planning committee in the ancient past — which at times can feel somewhat thankless. I salute you all!
To begin, so many things were wonderful, especially the mere humanity of seeing once again so many old friends that I have become so accustomed to seeing regularly, yet have been missing in person for 3 or more years. I would have paid just for this. In addition, an unanticipated feature was the opportunity to meet so many new virtual friends that I have made over the course of the pandemic via Twitter and other Zoom-like interactions. In moments like these, it hit me hard how much I have missed these human interactions.
At the same time, some elements were palpably missing. At first it was hard to put my finger on it, but in talking to many meeting-goers there was a countervailing odd feeling balancing the joy of the live interactions. Perhaps a sense of ennui. People were somewhat confused as to where to go and where to gather. In the end, it was universally expressed that the missing element was the poster hall — that sacred space that was not in competition with other elements, live or virtual, where you interacted with the old and the new.
For many who subspecialize (eg, the vasculitis goers, lupus aficionados, psoriatic arthritis, myositis, pediatrics, etc.), going down the line of posters of your niche area was like sitting at the bar at Cheers. It provided a sense of knowing and being known. For the initiates, there is no better way to begin the process of belonging than by engaging mano-a-mano with the highs and lows of rheumatology through your work. It must return in full glory, and I am thrilled to learn through Twitter that our new president Doug White, MD, PhD, has pledged the posters will return!
I could also say something similar for the meet-the-professor sessions, which is where we would always direct the fellows for the very best talks based on their interests. Similarly, I will say that the “study groups,” now gone, were wonderful, as the side conversations with those with whom you have shared passions were always as good as the content of the session. Also needed: A better place to gather and more food, which may sound trivial but only enhances the humanistic dimension of such a meeting, and if you are shelling out several thousand or much more to attend you deserve it.
Finally, what to do about the virtual meeting? This is tough one, as EULAR 2023 will not have such an option. I personally believe that some of the meeting can and should be virtual but not all of it. The Twitter ambassadors were amazing. How do people like @Rheum_cat (Jean Liew, MD), @RheumNow (Jack Cush, MD), @RichardPAConway (Richard Conway, MB, PhD), @KDAO2011 (Kathryn Dao, MD) and many more eat, sleep, learn and tweet at the same time!
Lastly, the hubs are nice but it seemed unfair to ask people attending the meeting to go to a place (ie, their hotel or a room) and interact virtually with others and miss the live meeting. Why not post a daily lineup of the best plenary sessions — not every single abstract, which is so costly — and make them cheap or free for underserved practitioners. If you want the humanity and the whole experience, then come to the meeting. I recognize that COVID-19 was the elephant in the room in the planning process, and hopefully it will not be so as we move ahead.
If I left out your opinion and ideas — and I know there are a ton of good ones out there — please share them with me (and especially next year’s planning committee, because I know they will be asking all of us). That’s my dissection, what’s yours? Please share your thoughts with me at calabrl@ccf.org or at rheumatology@healio.com.
- For more information:
- Leonard H. Calabrese, DO, is the Chief Medical Editor, Healio Rheumatology, and Professor of Medicine, Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine of Case Western Reserve University, and RJ Fasenmyer Chair of Clinical Immunology at the Cleveland Clinic.
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