The Diversity and Inclusion Committee promotes health disparities research and efforts to improve health outcomes among ethnic and racial groups who carry a higher burden of liver disease. Based on positive feedback from the 2018 workshop on Ethnic and Racial Disparities in Liver Disease, this two-hour workshop reviews current programmatic efforts to eliminate disparate outcomes in liver disease and liver transplantation.

In the world's poorest nations, the appalling loss of life from easily treated or preventable illnesses represents a moral tragedy. This year's President's Choice Lecture explores potential strategies to correct this inequity, including collaborative partnerships among medical professionals, ways to accurately measure the impact of global disease management efforts and the innovative solutions necessary to accomplish this great task.

Patient and caregiver education, and transition to care are important aspects for hospital discharge. At this informative program, experts will review multidisciplinary strategies to optimize discharge planning and share innovative models of outpatient care in liver disease, including empowering patients and caregivers, decreasing risk factors and the incidence of hospital readmissions, and reducing costs.

Acute on Chronic Liver Failure (ACLF) is a well-recognized rapid course of liver disease that can have devastating consequences on patients. At this symposium, faculty will discuss ACLF’s common triggers and explore current perspectives of management in the context of these triggering events. Topics covered include microbiome analysis to identify high-risk patients and the role of transplantation.

Review data from ongoing clinical trials for alcoholic hepatitis, explore the role of early liver transplantation and discuss the management of alcohol use disorder in patients with alcoholic hepatitis and acute on chronic liver failure. Topics covered include trial design considering standards of care and liver transplantation’s emerging role and subject recruitment challenges for clinical trials in alcoholic hepatitis.

Immunosuppression in the liver transplant setting includes multiple drugs aimed at predetermined trough levels, adjusted to time after transplantation. Excellent graft and patient survival supports immunosuppression, but there may be significant short- and long-term risks. At this presentation, experts will discuss clinical approaches to immunosuppression in liver transplant patients, including biomarkers used for safe personalization of this process.

Several NIH institutes showcase programs, innovations and opportunities to the AASLD membership at this informative event. Representatives of the NCI, NIDDK, NIAID and NIAAA will present areas of mutual interest to the institute and AASLD membership, including liver cancer, NASH, viral hepatitis and alcohol use disorder. This is a unique opportunity to learn more about interagency collaboration and funding opportunities.

Discuss the current state of the ABIM Maintenance of Certification (MOC) program for gastroenterologists and transplant hepatologists at this update. Speakers will review the expense, time commitment and relevance of this program’s requirements; current MOC requirements in the program; the means to meet these requirements; progress made in addressing concerns from ABIM diplomats; and alternative pathways to board recertification.

If you are a general practitioner caring for patients with a variety of liver diseases, this hepatology update is designed for your needs. Review significant new findings in hepatology and how they may affect current clinical practice, ask questions and discuss challenges faced in daily clinical settings.

Value-Based Arrangements are increasingly becoming part of the healthcare landscape. The goal of this program is to educate and empower hepatologists to be valuable contributors to the success of these new arrangements and play an active role in developing and implementing beneficial approaches.