Executive Director's Report: 1st Qtr 2026

Dear UHMS Governance Team, Council Members, Committee Chairs, Chapter Leaders, and Members,

As we welcome 2026, I want to extend my warmest wishes to each of you and your families for a healthy, fulfilling, and prosperous New Year. Please accept this message as a virtual toast to your health, your professional success, and to the continued advancement of undersea and hyperbaric medicine in the year ahead.

In many ways, 2025 rivaled any other year in its sheer chaos. Now, if you were lucky enough to miss the crazy train that included new Darwin award winners, the tragic death of an innocent child at the hands of those who were entrusted with his care, and the impact of increased Federal budget spending limits, count your blessings.  

As I reflected on our success over the past 364 days of 2025, I looked to my four notes in Pressure to gain perspective on managing the landscape in front of us, and there was one unified message:

• Mission clarity matters. The adoption of UHMS's Vision, Values, and Mission (VVM) sharpened our strategic focus and reinforced patient safety, scientific rigor, education, and accreditation as our north stars.
• Safety is non-negotiable. The tragic chamber fires in 2025 underscored the importance of standards, codes, training, and accreditation; they are not optional.
• Accreditation is the clearest signal of trust. UHMS Hyperbaric Facility Accreditation continues to stand as the gold standard for safe, evidence-based hyperbaric care.
• Momentum is building. From education and research to advocacy and global visibility, UHMS is leaning forward with purpose.

Similarly, in reviewing my reports to our Board over the past year, we really focused on UHMS's core mission areas, including the following.

• PATH, certification pathways, and life-long learning, supporting workforce competency and professional development.
• Accreditation, safety, and standards, including enhanced AHJ education following the Troy, MI incident.
• Research, registries, and data-driven policy, advancing evidence and credibility.
• Communications, education, and chapter engagement, ensuring UHMS remains visible, responsive, and relevant.

Each of these efforts continues to be guided by the same principles: advancing safe, ethical, and scientifically grounded hyperbaric care for the patients and communities we serve.

Thanks to your leadership and engagement, UHMS achieved meaningful progress this year, including:

• A highly successful joint Annual Scientific Meeting with AsMA, welcoming nearly 1,800 attendees and setting the stage for future collaboration.
• Strengthened hyperbaric facility accreditation awareness, with increased interest following national safety events.
• Continued growth and maturation of the PATH program, expanding high-quality, competency-based training for physicians and non-physician providers.
• Ongoing updates to UHMS guidelines, accreditation manuals, and educational offerings, ensuring alignment with best practices and emerging evidence.
• Strong financial stewardship allowed the UHMS to reinvest in mission-driven initiatives.

Accreditation, Education, and External Engagement

Throughout 2025, I have used LinkedIn to engage publicly on UHMS-related matters, particularly around safety, accreditation, and standards. This included commentary on the new AMA policy recognizing the importance of accreditation, as well as broader discussions highlighting why independent, evidence-based accreditation protects patients and providers alike.

These conversations amplify UHMS's voice beyond our membership and help shape how regulators, payers, and the public understand hyperbaric medicine.

UHMS & AsMA: Stronger Together

Our partnership with the Aerospace Medical Association continues to deepen. The joint ASM is now firmly established as a flagship scientific meeting, and we are actively exploring future collaborations at the intersection of undersea and hyperbaric medicine, aerospace medicine, operational readiness, and human performance. This relationship positions both organizations to lead across domains, from sea to space.

Looking Ahead

2026 offers an opportunity to lead with clarity, collaborate with intention, and continue raising the bar for our specialty. UHMS is strongest when its members are informed, engaged, and united around purpose.

I will close with a thought that resonates and is often attributed to Peter Drucker: "The best way to predict the future is to create it."

UHMS is at the very tip of the spear in creating our future by executing the organization's vision and mission with discipline and intention.

Thank you for everything you do for UHMS and for the specialty of undersea and hyperbaric medicine.

Sincerely,
John Peters
Executive Director
Undersea and Hyperbaric Medical Society