Russel M. Nelson Annual Cardiothoracic Surgery Lecture

The 8th annual Russell M. Nelson, MD, PhD, Visiting Professorship Lecture was held on October 6, 2022 at the Grand America Hotel in downtown Salt Lake City. This year’s keynote speaker was Dr. David Fullerton who is the John T.M. Wright Endowed Chair in Heart Valve Surgery, a Professor of Surgery, and the Head of the Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery and Vice-Chair of Research in the Department of Surgery at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. He is also the Cardiac Surgeon-in-Chief and the Program Director of the University of Colorado’s Thoracic Surgical Residency Program. Dr. Fullerton has authored more than 300 peer-reviewed papers and has held numerous national and international leadership positions, along with his roles of administrator and surgeon. His keynote address, “Generations in Surgical Education,” explored the historical differences in generations from the late 1800s onward. Dr. Fullerton highlighted changing family dynamics and norms of working outside of the home over the year. Likewise, he noted the rapid changes in technology that have uniquely impacted Millennials, emphasizing that we are only years away from this generation making up the majority of the workforce. We are grateful to Dr. Fullerton for sharing his time and insights with us!