Legacy of Excellence Digital Flipbook

LEGACY OF EXCELLENCE

whole healthcare system, and particularly academic medical centers, would implode. Despite the strains, we are still here, but facing even greater hurdles and the threat of fragmentation within our specialty. “Fortunately, resilience is another constant in life. We persevere and adapt as we continue to provide excellent care to our patients and train new physicians for the future. The American Academy of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery supports us in our efforts but is only as good as the combined efforts and collective wisdom of its membership. So, attend the meetings, work on committees, and make your voices heard.” Dr. Woodson has had a significant impact on the AAO-HNS/F’s international outreach and activities and was instrumental with the International Task Force and the subsequent creation of the International Advisory Board (IAB). The IAB was established in 2016 as an international member network within the AAO-HNS/F and is made up of otolaryngologists around the world who belong to the ICS affiliated network. The IAB serves as an important avenue of communication with the Board of Directors to help improve the programs and policies of the AAO-HNS/F. It gives voice to the global community of otolaryngologists–head and neck surgeons with the goal of promoting the highest standards of clinical care through collaboration to advance education, research, and communication. Dr. Woodson’s global humanitarian efforts along with her scientific reputation greatly aided the acceptance of the organization’s aggressive advancement of the entire international program. During her time in office, Dr. Woodson presided over the transition from David R. Nielsen, MD, as EVP/ CEO of the AAO-HNS/F to James C. Denneny, III, MD. “Dr. Nielsen has emphasized quality, evidence based guidelines, and performance measurement during his tenure at AAO-HNS,” Dr. Woodson wrote in the Bulletin . “Dr. Denneny has always demonstrated a passion for improving the care of our patients, and as Dr. Nielsen departs, we could not be left in better hands.” Throughout her career, Dr. Woodson was also a strong advocate of gender equality. Writing in her August 2015 Bulletin column she noted, “Otolaryngology is not alone among specialties with regard to gender bias, although we rank near the bottom in terms of the percentage of department chairs held by women. A recent study found that 23 percent of the men, but only

five percent of women appointed as assistant professors reached the rank of full professor within a decade.” She went on to explain that “the issue of unconscious gender bias is not just a ‘women’s issue.’ Like ethnic and racial bias, it affects all of us. Beyond the issue of fairness to individuals, our society loses when talents and enthusiasm of people do not come to fruition. We have definitely come a long way from the ‘70s when women were first admitted to medical school in significant numbers, and I am confident that progress will continue, but it would be nice to accelerate things… The most effective antidote to unconscious bias is exposure to positive images. In order to achieve diversity, we must celebrate diversity. And any selection process should always involve a conscious effort to include female and minority as well as all qualified candidates in consideration.” When asked about challenges facing the specialty today or in medicine in general, Dr. Woodson responded in 2019 saying, “There’s such a problem with access to care in this country, and there seems to be so much misunderstanding about why we have the problems we have. The medical records system that was supposed to make things better is instead making it more difficult because there are so many different programs [that] don’t talk to each other. “I feel like there are so many conflicting issues that have us locked into our current system, something has to give. I’m not sure how the Academy alone can solve that… but working with other organizations [we] could address that. The Academy has been a real leader in multi-specialty efforts in a lot of different ways in the past. We have a lot of influence on making medicine better for everybody, and I hope that tradition continues.” Thinking back on her involvement with the specialty and the AAO-HNS/F, Dr. Woodson described her experience as “really wonderful. I enjoyed working on the committees when I started out. Like I said, I thought I was just lucky to be an otolaryngologist at all in the beginning, and there is so much opportunity. I have also enjoyed the chance to watch younger people develop, and to interact with them and advise them. That’s the future. The specialty is the people who are coming up now. We have top-notch students still interested in going into the field, and I think the future is really bright.”

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