PerfWeb Special Program - Perfusion training and service delivery in Thailand [320]

Joseph has been a practicing clinical perfusionist for 40 years. Currently, Joseph is the CEO of Houston Extracorporeal Technologies and is the program director of The New Orleans Conference and MediWeb which includes PerfWeb and NurseWeb.

Ann Guercio is a perfusionist with 34 years of experience in the profession and has resided in Houston, Texas for 31 years. She has provided clinical excellence in a variety of settings, including large academic centers performing adult and pediatric cardiac surgeries, single-center community health care facilities, and multi-center health care systems. Gratefully, Ann spent 10 years as a staff instructor at the Texas Heart Institute School of Perfusion, giving back to perfusion students at her alma mater.

Ann participates in perfusion professional societies and credentialing bodies. She is a Fellow in the American Academy of Cardiovascular Perfusion (AACP), a current Board Director on the American Board of Cardiovascular Perfusion (ABCP), and serves on the Texas Medical Board in matters of state perfusion licensure. Preserving, promoting, and advancing the Certified Clinical Perfusionist (CCP) certification process is forefront in her professional efforts.

Quality in cardiac surgery is another of Ann’s passions. She pursues objective advances through her associate membership and database abstraction work in the Society or Thoracic Surgeons (STS) registry. Currently, she is President of the Texas Region Data Managers Network (TRDMN) and divides her role in the Memorial Hermann Healthcare System between perfusion and STS registry duties. Ann believes that perfusion is part of the team effort of cardiac surgery. Through collaboration, communication, and data sharing, improvements in patient care are achieved.

In a large healthcare system, facilities can become siloed. Ann serves with a group of perfusion colleagues in her healthcare system to standardize where possible and share thoughts and ideas. She chairs the Perfusion Council at Memorial Hermann, which includes representatives from all system perfusion service providers. Through the Council, the perfusionists are able to compare processes and innovate, as well as network.

Outside of perfusion, Ann enjoys spending time with her husband, Sal, also a perfusionist, retired. They enjoy old home renovations, listening to music, cooking, cocktails, “talkin shop” and pretty much just being together.

Supaporn Kulthinee, Research Associate

Supaporn attended the Naresuan University in Thailand and received her bachelor’s degree in Cardo-Thoracic Technology in March of 2004. She went on the receive her master’s degree and PhD. in Medical Physiology. Supaporn continued her education with post-doctoral research training in Renal Physiology, Experimental Hypertension in February 2019.

Supaporn worked as a Cardiovascular Technician at the Heart Center and Cardiac Catheterization Department in Bangkok-Phuket Hospital in Thailand from 2004 to 2005. Then she took a position as a Perfusionist at Queen Sirikit Heart Center of the North East of Thailand in Khon Kaen, Thailand from 2005 to 2008. Supaporn was promoted to Chief Perfusionist at Queen Sirikit Heart Center of the North East of Thailand in Khon Kaen, Thailand in 2009 to 2011. She took a new position as Lecturer at Rajabhat Mahasarakham University at Faculty of Science and Technology in Mahasarakham, Thailand from 2012 to 2016, then took the position of Lecturer, Cardio-Thoracic Technology Program at Chulabhorn International College of Medicine at Thammasat University, Thailand from 2019 to 2021. In 2021 Supaporn took the Assistant Professor of Cardio-Thoracic Technology Program at Chulabhorn International College of Medicine at Thammasat University in Thailand. Currently Supaporn is a Research Associate with the Department of Plastic Surgery at Rhode Island Hospital/Brown University in the USA.