Greeting from President

Dear Colleague

Following Dr. Ken-ichi Hirata, I have assumed office as the 22nd President of the Japanese Circulation Society (JCS). At present, I am Professor and Chairman. Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, Chiba University Graduate School of Medicine, Chiba Japan. Since the foundation in 1935, the JCS has been achieving many remarkable results in diverse fields, such as research, practice, and human resources development and has grown up to the major medical society in Japan. The society now embraces 37,270 members, of which 17,260 are board-certified cardiologists. I am honored to solemnly assume office representing the JCS with a long history.

  “Basic Act on Stroke and Cardiovascular Disease Countermeasures” came into effect in December 2018 in Japan. Since then, along with the major objective of increasing healthy life expectancy under the slogan of “Stop Cerebral/Cardiovascular Disease,” the JCS has been promoting diverse activities. Specifically, in cooperation with the Japan Stroke Society and related societies, the JCS has adopted five items of strategy, namely, 1) Human Resource Development, 2) Improvement in Health Care System, 3) Disease Prevention and Education of People, 4) Promotion of Patient Registration, and 5) Strengthening of Basic and Clinical Research. The JCS is expecting meaningful achievements in the future from the proactive strategy. 

Collaboration with related academic societies is essential for the JCS to achieve its missions. Undertaking a hub role, the JCS has been building up a circulation confederation with many other scientific societies and associations in Japan, which include Japanese Society of Pediatric Cardiology and Cardiac Surgery, Japanese Society of Echocardiography, Japanese Association of Cardiovascular Intervention and Therapeutics, Japanese College of Cardiology, the Japanese Association of Cardiac Rehabilitation, the Japanese Heart Failure Society, Japanese Heart Rhythm Society, and surgical confederation (the Japanese Society for Vascular Surgery, the Japanese Association for Thoracic Surgery, the Japanese Society for Cardiovascular Surgery). It is beyond question that the collaboration with these academic communities form major medical powers and, therefore, I am determined to strive for greater results from the collaborations. 

International collaborations are also the JCS’s principal mission. The JCS has been collaborating with the American Heart Association (AHA), American College of Cardiology (ACC), and European Society of Cardiology (ESC), and expanding collaboration with other medical societies in Asia. An example is the collaboration with Asian Pacific Society of Cardiology (APSC) which is scheduled to hold a medical conference in 2027 in joint with the 91st Annual Scientific Meeting of the Japanese Circulation Society (JCS). At such international meeting I would like to introduce our successful medical practices and researches in the circulation field in Japan. Along with these objectives, enriching our Circulation Journal, Circulation Reports, and other related periodicals are becoming increasingly important and I will drive for improvement in our impact factors.

Human resources development in a long perspective is also essential. Education and training of young cardiologists and female cardiologists’ participation should be emphasized and promoted. In addition, I would like to have many opportunities to hear opinions of young cardiologists and female cardiologists who are members of the Diversity Promotion Committee, the JCS-JJC Committee, the Next Generation Committee, and the regional Committees for the Promotion of Diversity. Furthermore, it is important that medical staff come to play a wide role. Along with the line, the Certified Heart Failure Educator (CHFE) system, introduced recently in Japan, has been making steady progress. It appears as a key factor for the JCS’s continuing development that not only doctors but also medical staff need to play active part. I would like to educate and grow personnel so that they can take the initiative to lead the JCS in the future.

 I will exert every possible effort so that the JCS can fulfill its social responsibility, together with the directors, employees, and the members. 

July 1, 2024