♪ ♪ Hi, this is Eric Prestowski and welcome to another episode of EP on EP. What a delight it is to have our new president of the Heart Rhythm Society, Dr. Fred Kusumoto with us, who is professor of medicine at Mayo Clinic, but for the purposes of today, he's the new president of HRS. So Fred, first of all, welcome to the show and congratulations on your new office. Eric, thank you so much for that kind introduction. But as you know, you know, HRS is a community and while I'm sort of the face of HRS for this year, you know, it's really the entire community of heart rhythm providers who really, you know, do this and we build on the shoulders of giants and continue to go forward. But thank you so much. Well, you're, you're very kind and humble to say that, but I want to promise you one thing. If somebody calls me and says, you know, Hey Eric, you know, you were once president and I don't like what's going on. I'm going to say, well, I know just who you should call. And isn't that the strength of HRS, right? Is because it is such a small and intimate community that is really well connected. And I do think that that's the, you know, the vital strength of HRS is that, you know, you can do that. And you can say to whoever contacts you, let's say it's David Kahnem, say go talk to Fred about this, you know, and then send him my way and then we'll go forth. And that really is that intimacy, that nimbleness is really what makes us a really wonderful organization that I certainly am proud to be the leader of for this year. Well, we're happy to have you. Now, it's a great segue. You made my life very easy with your segue because I know I've spoken to you in the past and one of your passions that you're going to, I think, bleed into the year of HRS presidency is this whole concept of, of, of getting together, linking, and I know you have some new ideas on that. So why don't you tell us about what your plans are for the year as far as that's concerned? Yeah, Eric, this is a passion of mine. I've always thought of the EP social network, right? I mean, we think about the Facebooks and the Twitters that have sort of the bad reputations here at this point. But because HRS has allowed for this really tight connections between members, you know, really great ideas get transferred fast. And so it's not like the old days where people, oh, beta blockers were used after an MI in 10%, 20%, 30%, et cetera, in a really slow pace. As you know, in EP, great ideas really come together quickly and get disseminated quickly. And I think HRS is a vital part of that and can help leverage that to, in fact, make it better. And how are we going to do that potentially? Looking at ways to really enhance these communities. And now that we're getting out of this COVID, right, where we've gotten a little bit used to Zoom, it's just unfortunate where we have pajama bottoms and tie tops, but, you know, it's helpful there, right? We don't want to go back to just doing in-person. We want to have this merging of both digital and in-person experiences to then in the end, what are all these for? To really develop these strong ties that are long lasting. That the meeting that you have now will then continue for many, many years. Well, that's a great, that's a great concept and I'm delighted you're going to be doing it. So let's actually see how it's going to play out this year. And then I'm going to ask you about some things that I know you have planned for coming through in next year. Let's take the meeting this year that's going to be in person. And I'm very proud of HRS, you know, I've spent a whole year being on many, many meetings, you know, and I'm very proud of the meetings on the screen that you and I are currently on. And HRS was prescient in pushing the meeting back far enough that I know Boston's opened up and HRS is planning a really kind of a combo meeting. Why don't you just simply tell us what the highlights are you see coming up for our meeting in Boston? Yeah, Eric, you're absolutely right. I mean, very, very exciting with, you know, the progress that we have made with regards to COVID to allow gathering. I mean, this will be the first major meeting, major medical meeting where people are actually going to be able to get together and really interact in person. But also what's neat, Andrew Cron and Jody Hurwitz have put together a phenomenal program that really combines both the strengths of in-person interaction, but also with virtual stuff. I've already seen some of the virtual interaction. It's really exciting so that, you know, we've all done chats and this sort of thing, but think about trying to up our game with ways that virtual viewers can actually interact with other people, both real and who are at the conference attending in person, but also virtually. But having said all of that, the in-person experience in Boston is going to be incredible. I have seen a lot of the work that is there. It's going to now be in shorter snippets. So, you know, the 90 minute format was nice that the HRS had allowed for a deep dive into a lot of things, but in a lot of cases that was quite long. And so these are going to be 60 minute sessions with an absolute focus on interaction. And so that's the key, exchange of ideas. It's not the talking head up at the front, really, you know, kind of giving their, you know, lecture, et cetera, and then having absolutely no feedback and interaction. It really is emphasizing the interaction between members of the audience. So it really isn't an us versus them type of thing. It's an all of us interacting together. So those sorts of formats, I'm very excited about the program that Andrew and Jodi put together. Andrew Fauci, Ph.D.: So one of the things that, that I thought was the one valuable thing that came out of this was the ability to allow our colleagues around the world who may not even forget COVID, just have financial and, you know, limiting ways to make it to the meeting. Are you planning to have live, I don't know if it has to be live streaming, but something for people, let's say in areas around the world that really can't travel at this point or really don't have the means to travel so that they can partake in the education experience without waiting like a week later to get it? Exactly right, Eric. You and I have actually spoken about this. I do think that one of the strengths of what has happened in this digital revolution that has now been accelerated by COVID is this ability and acceptance of this digital interaction. And yes, you're absolutely right. Time zones become a bit of an issue. There's no question about that, but the program is being designed so that there are going to be ways that we can perhaps get around those sorts of time zone issues so that people can actually have real interaction with regards to seeing cases, you know, that have been recorded or live streamed, you know, discussions, those sorts of things. So it isn't like watching a, you know, sort of a rerun, for example, that's just a little bit earlier as opposed to let's say a month or so later. It's really to provide that interaction. So you betcha. Andrew and the educational team have really worked very hard to how do we engage the entire world on this? In fact, for last year, we were going to try to do some remote actual live sites that were then going to have moderators, et cetera, who would then interact with people on site to really promote that. So you'd have both in-person for the person who was away, but also virtual. And so that would have been a neat way to go about it. While we're not doing something like that this year, we are doing those sorts of things and thinking about it. I think that's exciting. And I think we'll see how it works out. I'm glad you're going to do that. You know, you and I have talked about it and I always feel bad when I speak to colleagues, especially in Asia, and they tell me they just don't have the wherewithal, they have the desire, but they don't have the wherewithal to get here. And why can't, and then, you know, the rest of that sentence, why can't we bring the meeting to them? So congrats on that. Now, I was looking forward to a couple of things coming up that I'd like you just maybe to tell us about. I heard about this nutty thing called HRX. I have no idea what HRX is. First, I thought it was one of these like SpaceX things, but then I figured it must, I must be wrong. And also I noticed that the program next year has been changed. Why don't you tell us about both of those? Cause they're kind of innovative and I think people would like to know. Yeah. So let's take HRX first. So this is a nifty conference that is going to be in the first weekend of December. And this is going to be in San Diego. And this is a non-CME, a non-CME course. It's not like HRS. It's not going to be HRS Scientific Sessions Lite. It really is to bring people together from sort of nontraditional sources. So engineers, for example, who are thinking about wearables, large companies that are thinking about medical information, patients, other stakeholders in our space to then get together. And I'm really excited about this because I do think that with this collective look and different perspectives, we're going to get neat ideas and real innovation. You know, Eric, you and I have heard this innovation all the time and it's just so overused. But I really think that this is something that can be innovative because, you know, you're bringing together a lot of different audiences who usually don't interact and that's really going to be exciting. So that's in San Diego in early December. As you point out, go ahead. Sorry, is it open to anyone or? Yeah, absolutely. And so that's just it. We want people who are beyond sort of the usual electrophysiologist, we want electrophysiologists obviously to be there because we have always been at the front of this, right? As you know, our field of medicine is really technology driven. People who are attracted to EEP generally are thinking board, you know, and sort of what is sort of the next step. And so we think that by doing this, by combining sort of this natural curiosity that all electrophysiologists have, but then also bringing in other views and anybody who wants to come can come, as I say, engineers from private industry who might be involved in something that is even non-medical, but to talk about ideas and to think about how can we use information, for example, and transfer that back and forth, how can we do it in a safe way so that, for example, we don't have to worry about a hack like that has happened, you know, in colonial pipelines and things like, what can we do? So those are the kinds of things, the perspectives that different people, not electrophysiologists, will be able to bring to this sort of conference and for us really to talk and then ultimately, right, for the best care for patients. I think that that's absolutely vital. I'm actually looking forward to it. I hope I'll have the time to do it. It sounds exciting. And then the second thing is I was planning, I know that you may, well, you know, those of us, some of us plan a year ahead, right? And I was looking at next year and I'm looking at the dates and I'm thinking, wait a second. I went to my calendar, I said, Friday? Friday through Sunday? I mean, whatever happened to starting the meeting, you know, on Wednesday? So why don't you, why don't you gently let everyone know what the plan is for next year's meeting? Because it seemed very different. Yeah. So you're right, Eric. And so there has been an intentional effort and design over many years. As you know, these meetings are designed and planned for many, many years to really go to something that wraps around the weekend. And why do that? That allows more people access to the meeting. You know, all of us have these incredibly busy clinical schedules and it really becomes difficult to get away nowadays. I know that at our place, I'm sure similar to yours, people are limited with when they can travel because, you know, you need people to mind the shop and it can't just be the one electrophysiologist anymore, right? I mean, you have to have a full service going on, you know, when the meetings occur. So this is a way to then allow more people to become involved. You have more people becoming involved. You have more ideas, more perspectives. I think that that's incredibly valuable. Having it be Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, again, more concentrated. So I want to emphasize to your audience that this doesn't mean that there's less stuff. The material amount is the same, but the point is, is that since you now can leverage digital ways to then package this, you can now go to everything. I think you and I had this discussion about HRS science last year. This was one of the first times where actually people could go to all the late breaking sessions, right? Because you didn't have competing things. And so that is incredibly valuable. And that's the kind of thing that we have to learn from COVID that was kind of going on, you know, in stepwise manner, but now accelerated. Let's take and leverage these new ideas and these new lessons we have learned so that we can provide a better educational experience. I think that's great. Fred, I really appreciate you taking the time to do this. And I think HRS is very fortunate to have somebody of your capabilities and your understanding of clinical electrophysiology. This is a year where we need somebody who understands the bedside, understands the lab. And I feel terrific that you're going to be the one who's going to see us through this year. I look forward to seeing you in Boston and thank you so much for taking the time to do this. Absolutely. Thank you, Eric, for having me. And I really appreciate the kind words and I'll certainly, it won't be for lack of caring or trying. That's for sure. Thank you. Sure. ♪♪

Dr. Fred Kusumoto

Heart Rhythm Society

community

collaboration

HRS annual meeting