Anne O. Lidor, MD
I am honored to serve as this year’s President of the Fellowship Council. Since its inception, the Fellowship Council has grown into a pivotal organization, providing oversight to over 200 fellowships that offer invaluable, specialized training to graduating residents in the most advanced and innovative surgical specialties. Beyond this foundational role, the Fellowship Council holds representation within the American Board of Surgery (ABS) and the American College of Surgeons (ACS), ensuring that our contributions to surgical training are recognized and implemented at the highest levels of surgical leadership.
We’re excited to welcome 9 newly accredited Abdominal Wall fellowships, and it’s wonderful to see new programs across all designations apply for membership each year. Notably, our Advanced Colorectal Surgery fellowships are now co-sponsored by SAGES and the SSAT, and the American Hernia Society (AHS) and American Foregut Society (AFS) have joined us as sponsoring societies. In addition, an ambitious fellowship curriculum redesign is underway, which will allow programs easy access to updated, designation-specific curricula for fellow training.
As our organization has expanded, we recognize the challenges that have come with growth, particularly in meeting our evolving IT infrastructure needs. To address these, we’ve recently upgraded our matching software, case log server, and website, and we’re actively working to add dedicated IT support to ensure a seamless experience for Program Directors and applicants alike.
We also recognize concerns raised by Program Directors regarding the potential oversupply of fellows. As the accrediting body, we are not in a position to determine fellowship numbers directly. However, we are in close communication with our sponsoring societies, who may adjust accreditation requirements to reflect specialty needs, helping ensure we train the right type and number of fellows moving forward.
Finally, we are deeply committed to the safety and well-being of our fellows. Over the years, we’ve issued guidelines on important issues such as FTE recommendations for PDs and coordinators, insurance coverage, equitable compensation, and parental and medical leave policies. We take all concerns regarding training environments seriously and remain dedicated to advocating for our fellows’ welfare.
I am excited to take on this responsibility and am always available to discuss any issues or ideas for improvement. Together, let’s continue to uphold the mission and standards of the Fellowship Council.
With best regards,
Anne Lidor