Dr. Ryan Horsley has attended and presented at nearly every SAGES meeting over the past 13 years. He says “the opportunity to present at the national level and publish my first papers in Surgical Endoscopy has allowed me to mentor my fellows, residents and medical students and offer them the same opportunities.”
And Dr. Horsley is definitely paying it forward. As the newly elected FES Committee co-chair, Dr. Horsley is also in charge of training his residents endoscopy at Geisinger Health System and has been actively involved in re-working and updating the exam. He says that being on the FES Committee has given him a greater understanding of what goes into the process of offering this exam, and that being involved on the national level helps him adjust his teaching at the local level.
In addition to FES, Dr. Horsley has long been active in the Membership Committee, “championing” and communicating SAGES’ many membership benefits and educational opportunities to Geisinger residents and medical students.
Dr. Horsley counts a number of SAGES members as his own mentors, including Dr. Anthony Petrick, who trained him in MIS & bariatric surgery at Geisinger Medical Center in Danville, PA. Under Dr. Petrick’s leadership, he was offered to join Geisinger as a MIS and bariatric surgeon and expand the bariatric surgery program at Geisinger Community Medical Center in Scranton, PA.
“Our program continues to grow and we now have two additional MIS & bariatric surgeons, Drs. Alex Falvo and Mark Mahan, both active SAGES members who I consider my partners, friends and mentors.”
Discussing the camaraderie that is uniquely SAGES, he says, “The nice thing about SAGES is that it’s all inclusive. We’re all different but all the same, which I realized the first time I saw all of the SAGES leaders on stage singing at the Main Event Sing-Off. Meeting up at the annual meeting every year is like a family reunion, and we’re all just surgeons who have a good time coming together.
I also love to see my other hobbies combining with others at SAGES, and this year was a fine example of this. I’ve always enjoyed running. This year under the direction of Dr. Jeff Marks, around 40 of us got up early and went for a nice 5k run just to kick off the morning and experience the city.”
As he goes further in his career, Dr. Horsley says he’ll continue to mentor others to join and become actively involved in SAGES.
The father of four–Emma, Will, Sara and Zephyr—will likely also bring his children to future SAGES meetings, which has allowed his family to explore the country, zoos and museums.
Outside of SAGES, Dr. Horsley loves watching all four at their various sporting events and continued educational successes. “I cannot wait to see what my children end up being passionate about as they choose a profession of their own.”