SVS, AVF Announce Agreement Toward Future Collaborative Efforts

February 14, 2018—The Society for Vascular Surgery (SVS) and the American Venous Forum (AVF) jointly announced an agreement laying the groundwork for future collaboration. The organizations aim to pool their efforts in areas such as advocacy, education, and research to ensure the highest quality of care for patients with vascular disease.

To start, various committees of each organization will include members of the other, and periodic meetings between the SVS and AVF will continue to explore future collaborative opportunities. Co-branded programs at the each group's annual meeting will highlight potential expanded educational opportunities, starting with the February AVF meeting and June SVS sessions.

In the announcement, SVS President R. Clement Darling III, MD, emphasized the degree to which the overall goals of each organization are shared and that collaboration will help ensure their effectiveness in meeting these goals. Dr. Darling cited joint testimonies in Medicare Evidence Development & Coverage Advisory Committee (MEDCAC) hearings as an example.

Also commenting in the announcement, AVF President Marc Passman, MD, indicated that a relationship has always existed between the two groups, but the new agreement goes further to define it and make organizational integration more seamless.

“Our core values are very similar,” said Dr. Passman. “This makes it very easy to partner with SVS to accomplish objectives, whether it’s guidelines or advocacy issues that arise, and see high-level, professional results with evidence and quality behind them.”