The 53rd AASV Annual Meeting is all in, all done. Well, that is not quite true. We still must wrap up all the statistics and get everyone paid, but at least our time in Indianapolis is over for 2022. It was great to see everyone in person! While I think the 2021 virtual format was a very effective mechanism for the exchange of scientific information, it certainly lacked the personal interaction that we all value so much at the Annual Meeting. That is why we all show up, right?
The feedback we received during the meeting was very positive. Yes, there were a few glitches and disruptions. There always are. Our goal as staff is to keep those behind the scenes and minimize the distraction for you, the attendees. I hope that we accomplished that for the most part. Everyone seemed happy and eager to catch up with old friends.
The AASV Annual Meeting has been fortunate through the COVID-19 outbreak. As you will recall, we left Atlanta in 2020 just as COVID-19 hit the United States and a few short days before everything shut down. In 2021, we went virtual like everyone else; we did not really have a choice. So, as we planned to return to an in-person format in 2022, we were unsure what attendance would look like. We felt confident, however, that our membership was anxious to get off Zoom and experience a real-world happy hour again.
The contracts for our Annual Meeting are negotiated years in advance. At that time, we commit to a certain number of room nights and a food and beverage minimum based on projected attendance. If we do not meet the room night or food and beverage quotas, the AASV can be charged for the difference. It is always a guessing game. The contract for the 2022 meeting was signed in 2018, when attendance at the meeting was showing a steady increase year over year and attendance projections were based on that trend. Then, COVID-19 hit in 2020 and everyone knows the impact that had on large gatherings and travel.
Unfortunately, not everyone was able to attend this year’s meeting in person due to illness, concern about exposure, or travel restrictions. Travel restrictions significantly impacted our international attendance, which normally accounts for approximately 22% of our overall meeting participants. Although 16 countries were represented this year, international attendance was less than 10%. In addition, we do not receive credit for room nights when attendees choose to book hotel rooms outside of our negotiated room block. While we were pleased with the attendance (approximately 880 total attendees), all these factors contributed to lower attendance than projected.
While we may not have met our projected attendance numbers, I think the meeting was a rousing success. The Program Planning Committee, under the direction of AASV President-elect Dr Mike Senn, put together an excellent series of scientific sessions highlighting new techniques and technologies. The information presented during the Monday and Tuesday General Sessions and afternoon concurrent sessions was inspirational, thought-provoking, and cutting edge. As always, the students did an excellent job presenting well-designed and useful scientific studies. In addition, attendees genuinely seemed to enjoy spending time together with our family of colleagues.
So, we are back home now. It has been almost a month since the meeting ended and we are still trying to wrap everything up. We are already gearing up to do it all again in Colorado in about 11 months. I want to thank everyone that took part in this year’s meeting. Your participation and positive attitude made the meeting a success. One of the biggest challenges at this year’s meeting was do we fist bump, elbow touch, or just hug. I saw a lot of the latter. I don’t know if that was because there was more hugging, or I just noticed it more having not really seen it since 2020. I am looking forward to doing it all again in 2023 (or at least I am sure I will be soon). I hope you will come join us!
Harry Snelson, DVM
Executive Director