Dr. Steven Cohn Closes Miller School Career with Busy Speaking Schedule
Steven L. Cohn, M.D., a hospitalist, professor emeritus of medicine and nationally recognized expert in perioperative medicine, has had a busy spring. Although he officially retired from the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine in April 2017, he has continued to work part-time and to teach. Now that he is finally winding down his academic career, however, the vagaries of conference scheduling have forced him to do so in a whirlwind of activity.
Steven L. Cohn, M.D.
Perhaps it is Perioperative Medicine, the text he edited that continues to be a strong seller, combined with his active role as director of the Medical Consultation Service at Jackson Memorial Hospital, that have made him a frequently invited speaker at medical gatherings. It was just a bit unexpected that he would have to speak 10 times at four different major meetings in four cities over a period of six weeks.
At the Perioperative Summit, held March 7-10 in Fort Lauderdale, besides serving as a co-director of the meeting, Cohn gave a lecture on preoperative cardiac risk assessment at the precourse, and then spoke about preoperative cardiac risk calculators, an update of the literature in perioperative medicine, and perioperative cardiac conundrums.
At the Society of Hospital Medicine Annual Conference, held April 8-11 in Orlando, Cohn gave a lecture on preoperative cardiac risk assessment and perioperative management for the Perioperative Medicine Precourse. He also presented an update in perioperative medicine — a review of the important perioperative literature from the previous year — and spoke at “The Great Debate: Controversies in Perioperative Medicine.”
At the American College of Physicians Internal Medicine Meeting, held April 19-21 in New Orleans, he spoke about various preoperative cardiac risk calculators for the Perioperative Medicine Precourse. He gave a lecture on preoperative evaluation covering multiple risk indices and calculators, and perioperative anticoagulation management focusing on the new oral anticoagulants. He also spoke at a “Clinical Pearls” session in perioperative medicine, presenting eight cases using an audience response system that highlighted specific learning points.
At the International Anesthesia Research Society Annual Meeting, held May 5-8 in Chicago, he presented “Preoperative Cardiac Risk Evaluation: The Internist’s Perspective” to an audience of anesthesiologists.
“The common thread was perioperative medicine and, more specifically, preoperative cardiac risk assessment and risk reduction strategies,” said Cohn. “The challenge for me speaking so many times was the result of the scheduling this year. These are annual meetings, but they generally don’t occur quite this close together.”
Cohn notes that a mix of clinical experience and technological evolution have driven considerable change in perioperative medicine over the course of his career.
“Over the years, we have come up with new and better tools for risk assessment, and innovations in anesthesia and surgical technique,” he said. “The result is that we’re operating on sicker people today than we were 20 or 30 years ago. We continue refining risk assessment and investigating options to lower risk. The goal is to identify the severity and stability of the patient’s comorbidities and do everything we can to optimize their medical condition prior to surgery. There often is no single right or wrong answer; that’s why we come together at these conferences to share the most current knowledge about the best patient care.”