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Plenary Session
Virtual
Bulent Arslan, MD, FSIR
Professor and Inaugural Chair
Rush University Medical Center, United States
Robert Lookstein, MD
Professor of Radiology and Surgery
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, United States
Omar Lateef
President and CEO
Rush University System for Health, United States
John Kaufman, MD, FSIR, MS
Attending Physician
Dotter Interventional Institute, United States
Luke Sewall, MD, FSIR, RPVI
President and CEO
VIR Chicago, United States
Gilles Soulez, MD, FSIR, MS (he/him/his)
Professor
CHUM, Canada
Bien-Soo Tan, MBBS (he/him/his)
Senior Consultant
Singapore General Hospital, Singapore
Geogy Vatakencherry, MD, FSIR
Program Director of Vascular and Interventional Integrated Residency
Kaiser Permanente physician, United States
Interventional radiology is at an inflection point. As hospitals, health systems, and private practices redefine their structures, IR leaders worldwide are making strategic decisions that will shape the specialty’s future identity, visibility, and impact.
This plenary brings together influential voices from academic medicine, private practice, and international health systems to explore why IR departments are evolving — and what those changes mean for patient access, operational success, and long-term sustainability.
Anchored in the SIR 2026 theme, “Creating Communities, Transforming Care,” this session highlights how structural choices can strengthen collaboration, elevate IR’s role within the care continuum, and build the communities required for transformative, patient-centered practice.
This session provides a foundational understanding of IR’s current trajectory — and sets the stage for deeper discussions on workforce, economics, and the future structure of the specialty.