Sunday’s Opening Session paid tribute to the past while looking to the future of respiratory and critical care medicine. CHEST also celebrated a record number of in-person attendees and the most in-training participants ever at an annual meeting.

“The future of medicine is here, and they are ready to experience all CHEST 2024 has to offer,” said Gabriel Bosslet, MD, FCCP, Chair of the Scientific Program Committee.

As attendees prepared to engage in the scientific sessions, networking activities, and special events showcasing the latest innovations and insights in chest medicine, Dr. Bosslet reminded them to consider some of the groundbreaking medical achievements that have taken place in the meeting’s host city. Boston was the site of the first use of anesthesia in 1846. Cardiac surgery was pioneered here in 1938, and in 1954, the first successful human organ transplant (a kidney) took place at what is now Brigham and Women’s Hospital.

“Medical breakthroughs, or any breakthroughs for that matter, don’t come without someone pushing boundaries and taking risks,” Dr. Bosslet said.

This point was illustrated later in the Opening Session when CHEST President, Jack D. Buckley, MD, MPH, FCCP, bestowed an Honorary Fellow of the American College of Chest Physicians (FCCP) designation to the “Black Angels”—a group of Black nurses who worked at Sea View Hospital in New York City in the 1930s and 1940s treating patients with TB.

“We celebrate not only your individual and collective accomplishments but also acknowledge the integral role of the care team in fostering a more equitable health care system,” Dr. Buckley said. “As Honorary FCCPs, the Black Angels join the distinguished group of CHEST members whose contributions have actively advanced the fields of respiratory and critical care medicine.”

Virginia Allen, DHL, LPN, Hon FCCP, accepted the honorary designation on behalf of the Black Angels group and said it was humbling to be recognized as part of the legacy of the academy that represents the most accomplished leaders in chest medicine.

“I accept this award for all of the nurses who served along with me,” Allen said, “contributing to the improvement of health care for the communities both local and globally.”

Dr. Buckley also recognized the new class of 168 Fellows, 205 new Distinguished CHEST Educators, and recipients of several other awards, including:

• Alfred Soffer Award for Editorial Excellence: Fabien Maldonado, MD, FCCP
• Early Career Clinician Educator: Lauren A. Tobias, MD, FCCP, and Abdullah Alismail, PhD, RRT-NPS, FCCP
• Master Clinician Educator: Gregory A. Schmidt, MD, FCCP
• College Medalist Award: Raymond L. Benza, MD, FCCP
• Distinguished Service Award: Carolyn M. D’Ambrosio, MD, MS, FCCP
• Master FCCP: Neil R. MacIntyre, MD, FCCP

“It really is a testament to the strength of the organization and to the profession to have so many dedicated clinicians with a deep commitment to not only practicing respiratory and critical care medicine, but also teaching it,” Dr. Buckley said. “Every recipient embodies what CHEST stands for, and it was my honor to have served at the helm of such a flourishing organization for the past year.”

Among the notable accomplishments of his tenure as president, Dr. Buckley announced a partnership between CHEST and the American Lung Association (ALA) to offer a grant in honor of the ALA’s 120^th anniversary. The $120,000 award will fund a guideline implementation project that aims to improve health equity.

CHEST’s response to the Embracing Anti-Discrimination, Unbiased Curriculum, and Advancing Truth in Education (EDUCATE) Act earlier this year underscored the organization’s dedication to improving diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts specifically in medical education. The legislation would eliminate federal funding for medical schools and accrediting institutions with DEI initiatives.

“CHEST responded swiftly and resolutely that in accordance with our mission to champion the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of chest diseases and advance the best patient outcomes, we are firmly committed to the health equity and the necessity of DEI efforts in health care research, education, and delivery,” Dr. Buckley said.

CHEST also has expanded its advocacy for better regulation of tobacco products and was key in introducing the Supplemental Oxygen Access Reform (SOAR) Act to Congress, Dr. Buckley said. The bill would establish a new payment methodology for non-liquid oxygen, allowing for most Medicare beneficiaries to be covered under base payment levels.

“It gives me great pride to be able to share with all of you these activities, and I’m eager to see what the future holds as we work together for the greater good,” Dr. Buckley said.

Dr. Buckley’s term as CHEST President will conclude at the end of the year. On January 1, John Howington, MD, MBA, FCCP, will become the organization’s 87^th President, and Neil S. Freedman, MD, FCCP, will become the President-Elect, ushering in a celebration of the organization’s 90^th anniversary at CHEST 2025 in Chicago.