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Saroꢀo LE. Discurso del Presidente del Congreso Argenꢁno de Cirugía. Rev Argent Cir 2022;114(1):82-88
First, I would like to thank Hospital de Clínicas Lerner, Lisandro Alle, Alejandro Napolitano, Marꢂn
of the University of Buenos Aires, where I received Drago and Tomas Flores.
training as a student and where I have spent my 32
years of professional life.
I would like to highlight the enormous work
carried out during the last year by the members of the
When I entered the residency program in 1989, Congress Commiꢅee: Fernando Iudica, Daniel Pirchi,
I was received by one of the masters of the house. Ignacio Maffassanꢀ, Pablo Medina, Lucio Uranga,
I have nothing but the best memories of Mauricio Lindsey, Sanꢀago Lenzi, Mario Nahmod, Emilio
Professor Vicente Guꢀérrez Maxwell for his wise and Quiñones, Ezequiel Palmisano and Damian Vanzini.
permanent advice. I am grateful to him because I
always felt his hand on my back supporꢀng me.
All of them contributed with their capacity,
dedicaꢀon and responsibility to make this congress a
He led a legion with 4 leaders that marked not reality in a ꢀme that was different from the usual ones.
only my professional career, but my life.
With the excellent commiꢅee’s secretaries,
With Aldo Bracco, prominent vascular Ornela Normanno, who survived to all the emoꢀon
a
surgeon, we used to share a cigareꢅe behind the scenes of surgery, and María Inés Boquete, Maine, we made
during secret clinical seminars that lasted unꢀl the last a fabulous team and generated a wonderful bond of
drag.
work and companionship. They have become almost
It was always a challenge to follow Hugo Esteva essenꢀal in my life.
jumping two steps at a ꢀme down the hospital stairs.
Thank you for so much you give to our
He was an example of innovaꢀon, he associaꢀon.
introduced lung transplantaꢀon to Hospital de Clínicas,
always at the forefront of thoracic surgery.
To the rest of the staff, all the secretaries of the
commissions and commiꢅees, and parꢀcularly to the
With H. Pablo Curutchet we enjoyed wonderful director, Dr. Marꢂn Mihura and Dr. Tortosa who have
dinners every Thursday aꢄer playing paddle tennis, diligently helped me.
and moments in the operaꢀng room in the era of the
I would also like to acknowledge the effort
commando procedures, during which as a second-year and contribuꢀon of all the internaꢀonal guests who,
resident I once asked him: “How deep are we going to with their onsite or virtual aꢅendance, enhance the
resect?” And he aswered “if the soul is compromised, academic quality of the congress.
we will resect the soul”.Do not ask me for moderaꢀon
aꢄer that episode.
The parꢀcipaꢀon of the members of Asociación
Argenꢀna de Cirugía is no less important. Thank you all
And, last but not least, my mentor and teacher: very much.
Pedro Antonio Ferraina, with whom I have shared the
The organizaꢀon of the congress demands an
operaꢀng room, trips, parꢀes and sorrows. I feel he is effort that requires financial support. In this sense, I
family and he knows what that word means to me.
would like to highlight and thank the sponsors for their
Thank you, Pedro, for adopꢀng me. I do my annual contribuꢀon to make this event possible, and
best to make you feel proud of me. parꢀcularly the School of Medicine of the University of
Saint Augusꢀne wrote: “Obey those who teach Buenos Aires for their sponsorship and collaboraꢀon.
rather than those who command”. Conꢀnuing with the main topic of this congress,
Undoubtedly, you have been a true example of I would like to briefly introduce the concept of safe
teaching and giving it all.
surgery and provide a context to this topic, which I
I feel I am the result of it, and I only hope you understand is already well known to many of you.
feel pleased with this moment I am living.
Human error is not exclusive to medicine and
It is in this huge concrete structure where I surgery; it can occur in all the fields of human acꢀvity,
spend a significant part of my life with dear friends as understanding that no one intends to make a mistake.
Diego Sinagra, Marcelo Nallar, Claudio Yaryour, Nicolás
But our duty as physicians is to take all possible
Heredia, or Esteban González Ballerga, among so many measures to reduce them to the minimum possible.
others that it is impossible to menꢀon them all, and
who are present here.
“Error is not aꢅributable reason; the
inexcusable behavior that led to the error is so”.
In 1932, Max Thorek, a thoracic surgeon from
Together we have gone through tragedies that
have leꢄ indelible marks, such as the tragedy of AMIA Chicago born in Hungary, published the book Surgical
and Cromañón, and unforgeꢅable social gatherings Errors and Safeguards.
during our shiꢄs which make up an invariable summary
of hospital life. All my affecꢀon and graꢀtude to all of
them.
Some of his concepts include:
“The first great error in surgery is the
unnecessary operaꢀon and the second, is a major
Iconꢀnuewithmygraꢀtudetowardsthosewho surgical procedure performed by a surgeon who is not
watch my back every day in Hospital de Clínicas. Thank adequately trained”.
you, very much Hernán Todeschini, Alejandro Moreira,
Gonzalo Zapata, Alberto Ferreres, Ariel Ferraro, Marꢀn goes:
And let us recall the now famous saying that