2022 in review

Greetings surf medicos!   Seems like a good time for a recap on what happened with the Surfer’s Medical Association in 2022 and what’s planned for 2023.  There were some big changes at SMA central with long time Executive Director Mary Showstark turning the reigns over to me.  She sure did a lot behind the scenes to keep things going and I am slowly improving my technical skills with Mailchimp, Zoom, web design and more.   We added new board members with Dani Vinn (membership director), Alexandra Myers (treasurer)  and Katie Kiley (social media) bringing young blood and fresh ideas to the table.  The Kahuna’s and board members had a great combined meeting to hash out some ideas for moving the association forward and continuing to meet  our mission.

Andrew Nathanson keeps cranking out great stuff in the Journal of Surfing Medicine.  After reading the latest edition, I now know not to play with dried up stingray stingers and to never grab my leash! I always look forward to its release and devour every word.  Can’t say that for the New England Journal!

Despite the ongoing pandemic there were successful conferences at Tavarua and Mag Bay Mexico.  Big thanks to Brian Sturgill and Erik Dworsky for coordinating the Fiji conference and Dan Moffatt for the Mag Bay conference.  Buy these guys a beer next time you see them!

We provided much needed medications and medical supplies to our brethren in Fiji and in Siargao Island, Phillipines.

Finally, we said good-bye to long time SMA Kahuna, Bill Jones, who passed away in the summer.  If you didn’t see his obituary check out the latest Journal of Surfing Medicine. He will be missed.

What to look forward to in 2023?  The Tavarua and Mag Bay conf,erence dates have been released and you can check the website for more info.  These tend to fill up fast so it would be great to have a few more conference offerings.  If anyone would like to coordinate one let me know!  It’s fun and we all appreciate having more options. 

Your board will continue to meet and work on all the things that go in to keeping a non profit organization running as well as looking at membership benefits, social media presence and future objectives.   I’d like to get our swag store updated and more user friendly, for one.  

Want to get more involved?  There are lots of ways!  Coordinate a conference, submit a journal article, or provide education and be a resource for your local surf teams or clubs.  Contact me and let’s make it happen!

Wishing you all offshore breezes and juicy barrels!

Deric Weiss MD