Joint AATS/STS Policy Statement on Educational Courses

The Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS) and the American Association for Thoracic Surgery (AATS) strongly discourage others from holding educational events in the general locations of STS or AATS sponsored meetings, including the STS and AATS Annual Meetings and the jointly sponsored Tech-Con Programs and Postgraduate Courses, during the 48 hours preceding those meetings. Such unauthorized events are deemed detrimental to STS and AATS educational efforts, and create excessive demands on the time and resources of cardiothoracic surgeons. Both STS and AATS urge their members and corporate partners, as well as other education providers, to respect and adhere to this policy. In turn, each organization will seek to accommodate others in their efforts to reach the cardiothoracic surgery audience in conjunction with their respective and jointly conducted meetings.