Society for Pediatric Anesthesia
We make anesthesia for children safer

As I prepare to hand over the SPA Presidency to Dr. Jim Fehr, I have been reflecting on what an incredible, and in many ways unique, two years this has been as I served in this role. When I took over in October of 2020, we were really feeling the significant impact of the pandemic both at home and at work. SPA had just moved our meeting to a virtual platform, and I took the reins via Zoom. Fast forward two years, and I cannot believe how far we have come.

With COVID-19 affecting all our lives, we have had to make major adjustments. I commend our members for their resilience, dedication, and flexibility. As a Society, we exhibited these same traits. We mastered the planning and execution of our meetings virtually, and in the process, we realized that virtual options at our biannual meetings should be a component of these education opportunities going forward. Now, our members that cannot travel to meetings have the chance to be a part of them too through our hybrid programs. I was thrilled to come back together and meet in person this Spring in Tampa as we celebrated 35 years of SPA. To me, it felt like a family reunion as I reconnected with so many friends and colleagues from around the country.

When I took on my new role, I wanted to continue the work begun by my predecessors to bring more members into active roles within SPA. I saw the Society as a place where energetic and motivated individuals could showcase their strengths and build connections with other members, whether at our biannual meetings or through our committees and special interest groups. I think that the last two SPA-AAP Pediatric Anesthesiology meetings demonstrated this well. In Spring 2021, we celebrated the incredible role that women have played in pediatric anesthesiology, and over 80% of the presenters were women. In April 2022, we had an incredible number of first-time speakers on the stage, and the meeting was stronger for it. The Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee and Women’s Empowerment and Leadership Initiative (WELI) have continued to grow in their outreach, and I could not be prouder of what they have accomplished. Finally, SPA continues to support young outstanding investigators through our Patient Safety, Education and Research Fund.

During the last two years, we have also prepared our Society to face the challenges of the future. Since 2020, the GME taskforce members undertook a huge endeavor to evaluate the state of our specialty and determine ways that SPA can better work for its members to prepare them for the future. They have made evidence-based recommendations regarding the workforce, education, and pediatric subspecialties that will help to guide our members going forward. We also are in the early stages of developing a more formal advocacy arm of SPA that will allow us to continue to meet our mission of advancing the safety and quality of care for our pediatric patients.

It has been a true honor to serve as President of SPA. I have had the privilege of working with an outstanding Board of Directors and Executive Committee that are innovative and forward thinking. I know I am leaving SPA in good hands for years to come. I especially want to thank Kim Battle and the Ruggles staff for their hard work and dedication to our members. And most importantly, I want to thank SPA’s members for their support and enthusiasm. It is because of EVERY member that SPA is a thriving and successful Society.

Nina Deutsch, MD
Professor, Anesthesiology and Pediatrics
Children’s National Hospital

Dr. Frederic “Fritz” Aroyce Berry, age 87, died on September 7, 2022.  Born on April 29, 1935. He was the second child of Admiral Frederic Aroyce Berry and Suzanne Ward Berry.

Fritz grew up in Annapolis, Md. with his three siblings, Suzanne, Tom and India.  He came to UVA as an undergraduate in 1952 and graduated from UVA Medical School in 1959. During his time at UVA, he was a dual Athlete as a member of UVA’s Varsity Lacrosse and Swim Team. He lived on The Lawn, was a member of the Raven Society and a founding member of the Virginia Gentlemen A Cappella Group.

After he completed his residency in Pediatrics, he served as a Lieutenant at the Navy Hospital in Taiwan as a pediatrician from 1962-1964. This is where he and his wife Suzanne, first found their passion for world travel and the Orient.

He then returned to UVA Hospital, completed his 2^nd residency in Anesthesia and became one of the earliest leaders in the field of Pediatric Anesthesiology. As one of his colleagues wrote, “Frederic A Berry was a giant from our UVA Department in the field of Pediatric Anesthesiology. He is considered to be one of the field’s earliest leaders and was a principal force shaping the specialty. He wrote two renowned textbooks on pediatric anesthesiology and shared his profound experience and knowledge by lecturing around the globe. He was beloved by his colleagues at the University of Virginia where he practiced for over 40 years and taught over 500 resident physicians. He is remembered by his contemporaries as a remarkable speaker and a gifted teacher who could get to the heart of the matter instantaneously. Fritz is remembered by all as a kindhearted and extraordinary clinician who was a fierce advocate for children.”

He loved traveling the world with his wife, Suzanne and together covered every continent for work as a teacher/lecturer, and for pleasure.  When not traveling he enjoyed spending time taking in the view from one of their 3 favorite places: their Mountain top home in Charlottesville, “the Hill”, their place in Deltaville,Va. “Bay Berry”, or at St. John, USVI. He loved all things water and passed that passion on to his sons, teaching them to Fish, swim, boat, sail and ski. He was a proud grandfather and was frequently sighted cheering loudly on the sidelines of their games or enthusiastically enjoying one of their school performances.

He is survived by his wife, Suzanne, their sons, Fritz Berry and wife Lori and their three children, Fritz, Sheridan and Morgan, Son Hayden and his wife Cathy, and Son Alex. He is also survived by his three siblings: Suzanne Hamilton, Tom Berry and India Walsh, and his beloved nieces, nephews and extended family.

In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation in memory of Dr. Berry to the Frederick A. Berry, MD Professorship in Pediatric Anesthesiology to:

University of Virginia
P.O. Box 37963
Boone, IA 50037

Memo: Berry Professorship #14764

Or on-line via the following link https://www.givecampus.com/q3kyx3 .  Search by “Berry” in the designation line.

Written by Myron Yaster, MD

We lost a giant this week, Dr. Estela Melman (1939-2022),¹ who passed away after a tragic traumatic injury.  If there was such a thing as an international Mount Olympus of Pediatric Anesthesia, Estela would be a prominent figure carved into that stone.  Often thought of as the “mother of pediatric anesthesia in Mexico”, Dr. Melman overcame enormous sexist and anti-semitic obstacles to pioneer the modern practice of anesthesia in Mexico.  She inspired generations of anesthesiologists, pediatricians, and surgeons in Mexico and internationally.  Despite her enormous contributions to anesthesia and critical care medicine, she remained a remarkably humble and gracious mentor, colleague, and friend.  I had several opportunities of meeting Estela and her beloved husband, Dr. Guillermo Bierzwinsky, at SPA annual meetings and as an invited visiting professor.  Their kindness and love for each other, medicine, and Mexico were an inspiration to me and I will truly miss her.

Perhaps her most internationally important contribution to pediatric anesthesia was her pioneering work with regional anesthesia in children.  It may be hard for many of you to believe but until the 1980s regional anesthesia was rarely used in pediatric anesthesia practice.  Working initially in a cadaver laboratory to determine the doses of local anesthetic needed to achieve satisfactory dermatomal spread, and then with children in IRB‐approved research trials, Dr. Melman was among the first to demonstrate the effectiveness of neural blockade, particularly the caudal approach to the epidural space, in pediatric anesthesia.² Indeed, her original study was met with substantial skepticism and was rejected by one of the editors at Anesthesia and Analgesia.  According to Melman, the editor wrote that “regional anesthesia in pediatrics would never be accepted in the United States nor any of the developed countries and would be of interest only in underdeveloped countries like Mexico.” Fortunately, others on the editorial board disagreed and the published manuscript² revolutionized care, making pediatric regional anesthesia and caudal blockade ubiquitous throughout the world.

Aside from her leadership roles in the Mexican College of Anesthesiologists and the National Board of Certification in Anesthesia, she was a member of the Mexican National Academy of Medicine (Academia Nacional de Medicina), the Mexican Academy of Pediatrics (Academia Mexicana de Pediatría), the Federation of Mexican Colleges of Anesthesiologists (part of the WFSA), and the Mexican Society for Pediatric Anesthesiologists. Finally, she was a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Society of Anesthesiologists, the American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine, and was a founding member of the Society for Pediatric Anesthesia.

I haven’t given justice in recounting her amazing journey and her contributions in this PAAD.  I would urge all of you to read her story, which was published in the Journal of Pediatric Anesthesia as part of an ongoing history project.¹

1. Melman E, Arenas JA, Tandazo WE. Caudal anesthesia for pediatric surgery. An easy and safe method for calculating dose requirements. Anesthesiology. 1985;63:3A, 463.
2. Melman E, Arenas JA, Tandazo WE. Caudal anesthesia for pediatric surgery. An easy and safe method for calculating dose requirements. Anesthesiology. 1985;63:3A, 463.

The recent decision of the Supreme Court of the United States, the rescinding of Roe vs Wade and overturning the constitutional right to abortion, directly impedes the sanctity of the doctor-patient relationship and will harm our patients and colleagues. The mission of the SPA is to care for children, their families, and our pediatric anesthesia community based on the science and best evidence available to us.  Therefore, as patient safety experts, we stand firm in our support for access to safe abortion care for all who seek it and the reproductive rights of all. We offer our support to our members as we all navigate the new waters raised by this decision.

SPA Board of Directors