Trainee Activities and Services
The following information pertains to the program for the 2022 ASH Annual Meeting. Information on the 2023 program will be made available in early July.

ASH provides a variety of high-quality educational, career-development, and networking opportunities to help trainees make the most of their meeting experience.
The following activities and services have been identified as most relevant to the unique interests of undergraduates, medical and graduate students, residents, and fellows.
These activities are open only to individuals with a blue trainee badge.
ASH-a-Palooza
The “Trainee Day” attendees may know from past annual meetings has been re-imagined as ASH-a-Palooza! What has emerged is a new educational experience that will offer a relaxed, open learning environment for trainees in a festival-like setting with multiple opportunities for micro learning. Trainees won’t want to miss this fun, interactive, half-day event, complete with engaging ASH Talks, “speed mentoring,” food, and more!
ASH-a-Palooza will be held Friday, December 6, from 12:30 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. at Topgolf, located across Universal Boulevard from the North Building of the Orange County Convention Center. A courtesy shuttle will be provided between the Orange County Convention Center West Building and Topgolf. Learn more.
ASH Talks
The ASH Talk sessions will be 18 - to 20 - minute presentations, similar to a TED Talk, with no podium and minimal slides.
Blood Drops
The Blood Drop sessions are five-minute presentations designed to provide short bursts of learning. Each micro learning session will be done twice in a row and will allow the audience to move easily between each presentation.
Trainee Welcome Reception
Friday, December 6, 2019, 6:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.
ASH Park @ The Plaza
This informal social event, hosted at ASH Park @ the Plaza, provides the opportunity for undergraduates, medical and graduate students, residents, and fellows (MD and PhD) to gather with their peers. The reception will include an overview of ASH trainee resources and a guide to the annual meeting for trainees. A shuttle will be provided from Topgolf for those attending ASH-a-Palooza to ASH Park @ the Plaza.
Career-Development Lunch Sessions
Saturday, December 7, 11:15 a.m. – 12:15 p.m.
Hyatt Regency Orlando, Orlando Ballroom LMN
These sessions provide an intimate venue for trainees to meet with leaders in hematology to discuss careers in the wide array of practice areas within hematology, including basic, clinical, and translational research, PhD careers, careers in industry settings, and careers in private and clinical practice.
Chair:
Ann LaCasce, MD, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA
Speakers:
Adult Clinical Malignant Hematology
Caron Jacobson, MD, Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA
Gabriel Mannis, MD, University of California, San Francisco, CA
Amitkumar Mehta, MD, University of Alabama, Birmingham, AL
Eytan Stein, MD, Memorial Sloan Kettering, New York, NY
Wendy Stock, MD, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL
Adult Clinical Non-Malignant Hematology
Shannon Bates, MD, FRCPC, MSc, McMaster University, Canada
Spero Cataland, MD, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH
Terry Gernsheimer, MD, University of Washington, Seattle, WA
Alice Ma, MD, UNC Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC
Rakhi Naik, MD, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD
Adult and Pediatric BMT
Andy Artz, MD, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL
Mark Juckett, MD, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI
Margaret MacMillan, MD, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN
Pediatric Clinical Malignant Hematology
Amy Billett, MD, Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA
Peter Gordon, MD, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN
Tara Henderson, MD, MPH, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL
Justine Kahn, MD, Columbia University, New York, NY
Pediatric Clinical Non-Malignant Hematology
Michael DeBaun, MD, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN
Julie Kanter, MD, University of Alabama, Birmingham, AL
Betty Pace, MD, Augusta University, Augusta, GA
Sujit Sheth, MD, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY
Laboratory and Translational Hematology
Theodosia Kalfa, MD, PhD, Cincinnati Children’s, Cincinnati, OH
Santosh Saraf, MD, University of Illinois in Chicago
Industry Careers
Paul Burton, MD, Janssen Pharmaceuticals
Roger Dansey, MD, Seattle Genetics, Seattle, WA
Ginna G. Laport, MD, Corvus Pharmaceuticals, Burlingame, CA
Zachary Roberts, MD, PhD, Kite Pharma, Santa Monica, CA
Government Careers (NIH and FDA)
Angelo De Claro, MD, Food and Drug Administration, Bethesda, MD
Ann Farrell, MD, Food and Drug Administration, Bethesda, MD
Nicole Gormley, MD, Food and Drug Administration, Bethesda, MD
Elaine Jaffe, MD, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD
PhD Careers
Paul Frenette, MD, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY
H. Leighton (Lee) Grimes, PhD, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, Cincinnati, OH
Nancy Speck, PhD, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA
Alisa Wolberg, PhD, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC
Jian Xu, PhD, UT Southwestern, Dallas, TX
Clinical Careers in Hematology (Private Practice Careers)
Chancellor Donald, MD, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA
Paul Fishkin, MD, Illinois Cancer Center, Peoria, IL
Gwendolyn Ho, MD, Kaiser Permanente, Sacramento, CA
Michael Tarantino, MD, Bleeding & Clotting Disorders Institute, Peoria, IL
Medical Educators in Hematology
Leslie Ellis, MD, MSHPEd, Wake Forest Baptist Health, Winston-Salem, NC
Ariela Marshall, MD, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN
Alfred Lee, MD, PhD, Yale University, Hartford, CT
Deborah Siegal, MD, MSc, FRCPC, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada
Systems Based Hematology
Nathan Connell, MD, MPH, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA
Colleen Morton, MBBCh, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN
Hemostasis and Thrombosis Poster Walk for Trainees
Saturday, December 7, 2019, 7:30 a.m. - 9:00 a.m.
Orange County Convention Center, Hall B, Level 2
This is an intimate and exclusive event where trainees will have the opportunity to network with leaders in the field of hemostasis and thrombosis. The walk includes key opinion leaders who will lead small groups of trainees through a curated set of six hemostasis and thrombosis focused posters in the Poster Hall. This will be followed by a panel discussion with a continental breakfast in a dedicated theater.
Panelists:
Lawrence F. Brass, MD, PhD
University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA
Mark Crowther, MD
St. Joseph's Hospital
Hamilton, Canada
Jorge Di Paola, MD
University of Colorado School of Medicine
Englewood, CO
Katherine A. High, MD
Spark Therapeutics
Philadelphia, PA
Anita Rajasekhar, MD
University of Florida Health Shands Hospital
Gainesville, FL
Junior Faculty Career Development Session
Sunday, December 8, 2019, 4:30 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Orange County Convention Center, W307
This education session is designed for junior faculty to discuss career development skills that aren’t typically taught during fellowship. This year’s theme is The Search for an Academic Job: Understanding the Basics and will cover early career topics, including negotiating, presented by a panel of esteemed faculty. The first speaker will provide introductory remarks and then serve as moderator for panel discussion which would cover early career topics, including negotiating, presented by a panel of esteemed faculty.
Chair:
Rakhi P. Naik, MD, Johns Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore, MD
Understanding Promotion and Tenure
Speaker:
Marc Kahn, MD, MBA, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA
Looking for an Academic Job and Show Me the Money: Negotiating Your Salary and Benefits
Panelists:
Siddhartha Jaiswal, MD, PhD, Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA
Jose Lopez, MD, University of Washington, Seattle, WA
Sarah Meyer, PhD, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA
Eric Pietras, PhD, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO
Trainee Didactic Sessions
On Sunday and Monday, ASH will offer didactic sessions designed to provide trainees with an overview of timely and relevant career-oriented issues. Please note that lunch will not be provided.
Meeting Tips: Giving a Scientific Presentation, Being a Good Discussant and Asking a Question in the Aisle
Sunday, December 8, 2019, 11:15 a.m. - 12:15 p.m.
Orange County Conversation Center, W314
Speakers:
Chris Flowers, MD, MS, Emory University, Atlanta, GA
Mikkael Sekeres, MD, MS, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH
Application of Microarray and Large Datasets to Hematology and Bioinformatics
Sunday, December 8, 2019 11:15 a.m. - 12:15 p.m.
Orange County Convention Center, W315
Speakers:
Lucy Godley, MD, PhD, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL
Willem Ouwehand, MD, PhD, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
How to Set up a Health Services and Outcomes Research Program
Monday, December 9, 2019 12:15 p.m. - 1:15 p.m.
Orange County Convention Center, W314
Speakers:
Linda Burns, MD, National Marrow Donor Program/Be The Match, Minneapolis, MN
Navneet Majhail, MD, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH
Bridging the Translational Divide: The Role of the PhD
Monday, December 9, 2019, 12:15 p.m. - 1:15 p.m.
Orange County Convention Center, W315
Speakers:
Steve Ansell, MD, PhD, Mayo Clinic Rochester, Rochester, NY
Emery Bresnick, PhD, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI
Trainee Lounge
Trainees are invited to visit the Trainee Lounge in ASH Central (Orange County Convention Center, West Building, Hall C) to meet with colleagues and recharge with complimentary refreshments.
The Trainee Lounge will open on the following days:
Saturday, December 11 | 8:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. |
Sunday, December 12 | 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. |
Monday, December 13 | 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. |
Tuesday, December 14 | 8:00 a.m. – 2:45 p.m. |
- Education Spotlight Sessions
Sessions that facilitate discussions of evidence-based practice, decision making, and controversies in diagnosis and management
- How I Treat: Bringing Science to Clinical Dilemmas
Sessions designed to provide an opportunity for a small number of attendees to meet with a clinical expert in a setting that fosters interaction
- Continuing Conversations With the Speakers
Informal discussions with Scientific Program speakers, designed to provide increased access to information on a specific topic and to the opinions of experts
- Meet the Scientist
Sessions designed to provide an opportunity for a small number of attendees to meet with a scientific expert in a setting that fosters interaction
- Special Scientific Symposia
Symposia highlighting transformative research with implications for research and clinical practice across the field of hematology