Edinburgh, 8th of June 2019, Prof. O. James Garden retires as chairman of the BJS Society.
Looking back, I recall that on the 9th of May 2012, being Prof. O James Garden the honorary secretary of the BJS Society, I was appointed to the editorial board of the BJS. And over the following seven years I have had a meteoric career to become secretary of the BJS Society in June 2018.
Consequently, you might think that what I am about to say is biased, but I must warn you that you would be severely mistaken, because he has been the epitome of a global surgeon long before I even dreamed of becoming part of the BJS community.
Prof. O. J. Garden is an outstanding surgeon, researcher, educator and manager, but as you can read in The University of Edinburgh webpage, retired from clinical practice in the summer of 2018. Even so, he has remained committed to surgical research dissemination and global surgical training for longer.
Over the last two years, given my role as secretary, I have had the privilege of witnessing his chairmanship of the BJS Society. An extraordinary thinker and strategist, with a strong commitment towards the advancement of our two journals, BJS and BJS Open, and the promotion of global surgical training, James Garden will be deeply missed by all of us in the BJS Executive and Council, but be sure he will always be available if we need him.
Thanks a lot Prof. O.J. Garden. Live long and prosper.