Message from the CEO
Annual Report to Members, Donors and Supporters
David Julian Martin, CAE
Chief Executive Officer/Executive Vice President
Society of Critical Care Medicine
It is once again my pleasure to provide you with this annual report of activities of the Society of Critical Care Medicine (SCCM). Despite the challenges of 2009, it still proved to be a productive period filled with many positive outcomes.
Overall, the Society’s financial position remains strong with total net assets of $9.5 million – up from $8.7 million at the close of fiscal year 2008. The Society’s Council voted to pay in full the outstanding loan on the new headquarters building, as declining returns on investments were not offsetting loan interest. As a result, the Society ended fiscal year 2009 with no debt and $6.5 million in cash.
Total revenues for the year were just over $12 million, and net income from operations (excluding investments) was $450,000. Total operating revenues declined 14% compared to the previous year, largely the consequence of reductions in industry support such as sponsorship, exhibits and advertisements. However, the Society responded quickly to falling revenue by trimming costs to ensure a positive financial outcome. After factoring in non-operating activities (revenue from investments and financial activities of component organizations), the overall net revenue was $800,000. Actually, the Society out-performed fiscal year 2008 when investment losses and one-time costs related to the headquarters relocation reduced net revenue to $250,000.
The Society’s cornerstone programs once again performed well both programmatically and financially, as outlined below.
Journals Achieve Notable Milestones
The Society’s publications continued to grow and develop, led by Critical Care Medicine (CCM), whose impact factor climbed to 6.594. With an immediacy index of 2.065 (an indicator of how quickly articles in the journal are cited), CCM ranks highest among journals that publish primarily critical care articles (more than 50%). The Special Library Association named CCM one of the century’s most influential journals in biology and medicine, an honor that particularly pleased both journal and SCCM staff.
Pediatric Critical Care Medicine (PCCM) deserves its own accolades after receiving its first-ever impact factor of 2.330, exceeding expectations. Coupled with an immediacy index of 0.898, PCCM is well-placed among the relevant pediatric specialty journals. It now has the sixth highest immediacy index of all 85 pediatric journals.
Book sales showed modest increases and continue their cycle of annual growth.
Educational Programs and Meetings
The 2009 Critical Care Congress was held in Nashville, Tennessee, USA. The program was rated by registrants as one of SCCM’s best on record. Although professional registrations declined somewhat compared to the 2008 meeting in Hawaii, exhibitor participation increased. Additional 2008 conferences, including Critical Care Academy, the International Consensus Conference on therapeutic hypothermia and the Summer Conference on infectious disease, were well-received and performed soundly from a financial aspect.
The Pediatric Fundamental Critical Care Support (PFCCS) and Fundamental Disaster Management programs have proved successful additions to the Fundamental Critical Care Support (FCCS) family of products. PFCCS was welcomed warmly by members in 2009, its first full year. Revenues from this trio of programs were up nearly 10% compared to the previous year, which also saw significant growth; FCCS sales increased 48% in 2008, aided by the release of the fourth edition textbook. In 2009, revenues from this key activity reached $1 million while training more than 7,000 individuals in 27 countries, expanding the reach of SCCM as it strives to improve care of the critically ill and injured worldwide.
Membership, Organizational Changes, and New Opportunities
The Society traditionally has seen membership numbers rise 6% annually, but the economy took its toll on this brisk growth. Membership surpassed the 14,000 mark with modest growth in the physician categories.
Other activities of note throughout 2009 include the Strategic Planning Committee’s recommendation to change the Society’s committee organizational structure and responsibilities. A new, high-level Strategic Education Committee will work to coordinate and develop all educational activities.
Meanwhile, the former Education Training Steering Committee now will be called the Accreditation and Online Learning Committee to match its charge more closely. This group has been busy developing the new version of LearnICU; the site’s expected launch later in 2010 will mark a significant milestone in the Society’s online learning capabilities.
This spring, the Society activated its emergency response system to deal with the H1N1 influenza outbreak. A number of educational materials were developed and made available to members in affected regions. Resources were developed in both Spanish and English, as most affected regions were located outside the United States. SCCM President Mitchell Levy, MD, FCCM, appointed a special H1N1 Influenza Task Force charged with helping the Society prepare for this emerging threat. Randy Wax, MD, led the task force in developing several activities, namely a comprehensive online learning tool commissioned at the request of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Service. Anticipating a shortage of resources during the pandemic, the task force successfully compiled a program to train non-critical care providers. In addition, the Society developed two in-depth Webcasts and a series of iCritical Care podcasts. All of the Society's H1N1 influenza resources can be accessed at www.sccm.org/H1N1.
Special Appreciation
As you can see, 2009 marked yet another strong year for SCCM. While there were far too many other activities for me to mention in this short column, I want to take this opportunity to thank the more than 700 members of the SCCM Creative Community who volunteer their time contributing to these many outstanding efforts. Creative Community members are vital as the Society aims to achieve its mission. In addition, the Society is appreciative to all who contributed financially by registering for a meeting, purchasing a book, making a donation, buying an advertisement, exhibiting at a event, providing sponsorship, or simply sending an annual dues payment. The Society is grateful for your support during these challenging times.
Thank you! I look forward to seeing you at a future SCCM event or online at the Society’s Facebook page.