Communication Committee Update

Issue 36 | Volume 1

The Communications Committee has hit the ground running since our Annual Meeting in March. I would be remiss not to first attribute the success of this committee – and really, of SOCCA as a whole – to the dedication of Madiha Syed, MD, immediate past chair of the committee. Her leadership has resulted in the streamlined production of our quarterly newsletter, Interchange; increased engagement on our X page; the establishment of LinkedIn and Facebook accounts; and the effective dissemination of important Society events, among many other contributions.

Looking ahead, Liang Shen, MD (vice chair of the committee), and I have consulted with our President, Dr. Nunnally, and the Board of Directors to outline a plan for the Society’s continued success. Through the diligent efforts of our small group of volunteers, we plan to enhance our social media presence, increase readership of Interchange, and assist ARC in revamping the Society’s website.

Over the past five years, the committee has worked to build and expand the Society’s social media presence. The initial launch of our Twitter (now X) account was intended as an additional channel to communicate with current and prospective members and promote collaboration. Over time, our X page has gained more followers, and we expanded into Facebook and LinkedIn last year. In an effort to reach trainees – and hopefully attract them to the field – we are launching an Instagram account this year as well. Follow us @soccacritcare! At a time when fellowship positions remain unfilled, we hope this new platform will help showcase the appeal of our specialty.

You may notice some changes in this edition of Interchange. Beginning with this issue, we will feature themed editions highlighting various aspects of critical care, current challenges in the field, and other specific topics. Our goal is to make reading the newsletter more rewarding for our time-strapped audience. We are fortunate to kick off this new format with contributions from experts in obstetric critical care. In addition, we are trialing a cover page – similar to other medical publications – in hopes of boosting engagement.

SOCCA’s management, ARC, continues to facilitate a more nimble and productive Society. In this spirit, the Communications Committee is contributing to the website overhaul. You may have noticed some outdated links or pages; rest assured, these are being addressed. As part of this effort, the now-dormant blog SOCCA Drip will be officially retired.

Thanks to the dedication of our small but hardworking volunteer team, we anticipate exciting developments in the coming year. If you – or someone you know – are interested in contributing in any of the above areas, especially by authoring an article for Interchange, please reach out.

We hope you enjoy this first themed issue and look forward to bringing you the next edition, which will focus on opportunities in critical care anesthesia.

Authors