Coalition of American societies for anatomy

Abstract

On 17 October 2003, there was a historic meeting in Washington, D.C. Representatives from the American Association of Anatomists (AAA; Robert McCuskey, President; Kathy Svoboda, President-Elect; and Andrea Pendleton, Executive Director), American Association of Clinical Anatomists (AACA; Daniel Graney, Past-President; Arthur Dalley, Past-President; and Todd R. Olson, Treasurer), Association of Anatomy, Cell Biology, and Neurobiology Chairpersons (AACBNC; James West, President-Elect; and Stephen Carmichael, Past-President), and the Human Anatomy and Physiology Society (HAPS; Phil Tate, President; Sandra Lewis, President-Elect; and Gail Jenkins, Treasurer) gathered in a roundtable discussion hosted by Donald Jenkins of the National Library of Medicine. The meeting was the initiative of Bob McCuskey and enthusiastically endorsed by the representatives of the above-named organizations. The goal was to seek common ground on challenges and opportunities presented to the modern anatomist in the United States and Canada. The discussions were amicable and far-reaching. There was widespread concern about the source of future teachers of anatomy. Whereas the participants unanimously agreed that a shortfall is predictable, it is imperative to involve the lead administrators at the involved academic institutions (i.e., medical school deans). Bob McCuskey will organize leaders of the involved organizations, as well as a leader from the Council of Deans (a subgroup of the Association of American Medical Colleges), to draft a “white paper” on the importance of anatomy in health education, the shortage of anatomy educators, and the need to train qualified educators for the future. The use of donated human bodies for the purpose of education was another topic of discussion. It was agreed that recognition and appreciation of this precious resource is a preeminent concern to all anatomists. Also, public displays of human material need to conform to local laws and the sensibilities of the general community must be considered. Representatives from each of the societies will work together to address common concerns about donated material. Don Jenkins moderated the discussion in such a way that each participant had the opportunity to express his or her opinions fully, and each topic was thoroughly covered before moving onto another. Topics were as diverse as forming a coalition of health professionals who constitute the “end users” of anatomy education, to the future of virtual microscopy (the use of computers rather than microscopes) in histology courses. Each participant had ample opportunity to hear the opinions of others and to be heard. Mutual respect among the participants was abundant. Although historical differences among some of the organizations were reviewed, it was obvious that we are entering a new era of cooperation among anatomists. Several joint projects are already in place and more will be organized in the near future. As testament to this newly forged alliance, the AAA, AACA, and HAPS agreed to form an umbrella organization that will provide a forum for discussion and subsequently coordination of the common causes of anatomical organizations in the United States and Canada. This organization will be known as the Coalition of American Societies for Anatomy (CASA; a homey acronym, to be sure). We are predicting success for this newly formed coalition.