Dear colleagues, family, and friends.

Today is the most important day in my professional life, as I am greatly honored and proud to have been appointed President of our house, the Argentine Society of Cardiology.

And I feel even prouder to know that my colleagues have valued my work and my career by selecting me for this position.

I had the tremendous luck and pleasure to have worked for the past 2 years for the board led by Héctor Deschle and Claudio Majul. As I have once said, I think a good leader knows how to create a work environment based on freedom and trust, and both these colleagues share that virtue. Therefore, I want to express my gratitude to both.

The progress made by the SAC throughout its 86 years of history has not just been the result of the work by some visionary. It was due to the generous and committed contribution of each of the presidents; the members of our different boards and commissions; the Argentine Journal of Cardiology (RAC); the Argentine Cardiologic Foundation; the districts, councils, and local departments that are part of SAC País; the lecturers delivering courses; technicians, nurses, and non-medical staff, and particularly, every member of our society. I also want to say thank you very much to all of them.

Today I have the duty of representing them all, and in order to grow, we need to continue to recreate that work ethic that makes us proud to be part of the SAC. Personally, I am committed to that goal and certain that each member of our Society agrees with me, as the SAC makes us all better because of our effort and merit.

Nowadays, the paradigm implies living with no role model to look up to. Forty years ago, I attended case conferences every Wednesday and took my first steps in our Councils hoping to be inspired by and learn from this or that head of department, dreaming that one day I might be able to follow their steps. Personally, that worked for me.

Today relationships tend to be more fluid and transversal. Fortunately, technology has made knowledge highly accessible, and the utopia of resembling someone else has been lost in time. This new reality, in turn, has made us more disconnected and sometimes leads to a deep feeling of personal and professional loneliness.

And what do we receive from the SAC? The answer to this question may be personal. I would like it to be the place where you belong, a place open to dialogue, the frame for your professional development sharing ideas and experiences, your possibility in this ethereal universe of becoming an inspiration yourself, an environment where you can bond with colleagues to defend your interests and the interests of your community. It is truly amazing to witness the SAC grow despite the conditions in our country. I believe we are ALL making a great contribution.

Those of us who have had the honor to preside this Society never intended to redefine our institution, but rather to do our best for the SAC to continue to expand its brilliant and prolific history

My proposal has several parts:

This year our Society has worked hard to protect our professional practice and shall continue to do so. In the past, and maybe to this date, many believed that the Society had to focus only on scientific activities. Times have changed. We are healthcare workers and should be able to highlight the value of the work we do. The SAC cannot be indifferent to the economic reality affecting our cardiologists. We are not a labor union. We have the Argentine College of Cardiology for that. However, we are joining forces with other scientific societies to open any necessary means of communication with fund providers in order to defend our medical fees. We intend to submit a proposal to the relevant political authorities regarding any actions needed to ensure proper medical practice and to protect our professional rank. We cannot just be witnesses to this overwhelming reality. We have the responsibility of being protagonists and protecting the wellbeing of our cardiologic community and patients. We have already made some progress in this sense.

To conclude, it is now time to express my gratitude to others, as we always need others to become who we are.

I would like to thank the more than 100 residents who have come to our clinics since 1993, renewing day after day my desire and joy to continue to learn and teach. I thank my colleagues and friends Adrian Charask and Enrique Fairman for creating a respectful work environment where each of us has been able to develop as a group and as individuals. I also thank Carlos Bertolasi, Carlos Tajer and Carlos Barrero for their relevant involvement in my professional development. My deepest thanks to Carlos Barrero: my boss, my friend, and a brother I was given as a gift of life.

Thanks to Enrique Abramovich for helping me see my strengths and understand my weaknesses. Thanks to my siblings in law, nieces, and nephews. Thanks to my three children, Luli, Mica, and Rocco, for letting me transcend through them every single day in my life, and a big thank you to Yanina, for everything.