FTL Mentees Convene in Chicago to Network, Engage with Trauma Leadership

The ACS Committee on Trauma (COT) hosted its annual Future Trauma Leaders (FTL) Mentoring Days on June 25–26 at the ACS Headquarters in Chicago, Illinois. The 2-day event was packed with opportunities for the 2025 and 2024 FTLs to grow in trauma care and to engage with one another and experienced trauma leadership.

The 2025 FTL cohort includes:

• Erika K. Bisgaard, MD, FACS, from the University of Washington in Seattle
• Christine Castater, MD, MBA, FACS, from the Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta, Georgia
• Anthony Christiano, MD, from UChicago Medicine in Illinois
• Julia Coleman, MD, MPH, from The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center in Columbus, Ohio
• Reynold Henry, MD, MPH, from the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha
• Nakul Raykar, MD, FACS, from Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts

The first day included a series of short talks from trauma leaders discussing how to grow in trauma leadership in education, injury prevention, advocacy, quality, verification, and global outreach. Roundtable discussions followed that focused on COT programs on similar topics.

The second day offered a variety of engaging opportunities for the FTLs, including two speed mentoring sessions and two presentations in “Shark Tank”-style format—the 2025 FTL Skills Involvement and Engagement event and the 2024 FTL Participant Project Updates.

Learn more about the program, and apply to become a 2026 Future Trauma Leader.