In an era dominated by perceived divisions between individuals or groups, including in medicine and healthcare, there is positivity to be found in the profession of trauma surgery and its unique power to transcend barriers that can affect health, according to Edward E. Cornwell III, MD, FACS, FCCM, who will deliver today’s Scudder Oration in Trauma, Trauma Care: The Vehicle, The Barometer, The Original Yardstick for Equal Care in America.
“In our country, where we have such a divided national discourse, I see my oration as a celebration of trauma care,” said Dr. Cornwell, who also is surgeon-in-chief at Howard University in Washington, DC, as well as Past-ACS Secretary (2013-2019). “It takes a special effort to forge a career in trauma care, and the nature of the disease we care for brings us in the midst of so many social issues.”
Dr. Cornwell said that he will use some well-known, historically significant trauma cases to highlight that in trauma care, surgeons need to rise above the human-created barriers—socioeconomic, racial, political—that are part of US history.
The Oration also will be a personal talk for Dr. Cornwell, who will use comments from colleagues and family to show how trauma care makes an impact both professionally and personally. He noted that he often took Friday evening and Sunday morning trauma calls when his son was younger, which allowed him to attend many milestone events in his son’s life but also required time away at other points, illustrating the commitment to patients that trauma surgeons share.
“The disease that we respond to and care for tends to take place a lot on weekends and nights,” Dr. Cornwell said. “As trauma surgeons, we are bonded by the necessities of the job.”
In addition, Dr. Cornwell will address some of the significant and interesting findings in trauma research that he has led over his career as a renowned figure in critical care and violence prevention.
“I want the lecture to be a celebration showcasing some public and well-known cases of trauma that show that our calling transcends our past and of trauma as a vehicle for academic advances that we as surgeons have achieved,” he said.
And even though trauma surgery and traumatic injury require all due significance, Dr. Cornwell makes sure to note that his oration will strike an optimistic note.
“I don’t see a lot of optimism in the way that we as Americans talk to each other in many public settings. If you listen to just that noise, and not what goes on in our hospitals, our meeting rooms, in our conferences, you wouldn’t know the positivity that is no doubt a part of our day as trauma surgeons,” Dr. Cornwell said.
The Scudder Oration on Trauma is sponsored by the ACS Committee on Trauma.
For those who are unable to attend the lecture at 12:45 pm in Exhibit Hall B2 of the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center, it also will be made available for on-demand viewing shortly after the live presentation.
