Legacy of Excellence Digital Flipbook

LEGACY OF EXCELLENCE

(ABMS) to get a pilot approved for ABOHNS sleep medicine diplomates with unanimous support from all 24 ABMS Boards. On June 25, 2020, a summit was convened comprised of representatives from specialty societies who represented the breadth of the Sleep Medicine discipline and patient stakeholders, including the AAO-HNS. Summit participants discussed how to approach an ABOHNS continuing certification pilot in Sleep Medicine. In a March 2021 joint letter, the actions from the summit were shared, which included “the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) will introduce a longitudinal assessment for Sleep Medicine in 2022. This longitudinal assessment will be available to Sleep Medicine diplomates from all co-sponsoring boards. As an alternative assessment option, Sleep Medicine diplomates can still choose to take the traditional proctored MOC exam.” To further the message to the public that otolaryngologists are the specialists to see for sleep disorders, the Academy started to recognize the National Sleep Foundation’s National Sleep Awareness Week in March of every year starting in 2018, at the recommendation of the AAO-HNS Media and Public Relations and Sleep Disorders Committees. This included patient information published in the Bulletin and on the Academy’s social media networks. In addition, with the 2018 launch of the AAO-HNSF

patient website, ENThealth.org, patient information specific to sleep disorders became an important component to highlighting the clinical areas of focus for otolaryngology-head and neck surgery. Addressing the Long-term Effects of Tobacco The AAO-HNS, long-time member of the Tobacco Partners Coalition and ardent supporter of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kid, had regularly participated in the promotion of strict regulation of tobacco products by the FDA and historically supported state and federal legislation and regulations that helped to reduce the use of tobacco products and exposure to secondhand smoke in order to promote healthy environments and lifestyles for the public. Over the course of time, the Academy worked to promote a variety of anti-smoking-related topics, especially as vaping became more prevalent in all age groups but especially the youth, that would have an overall impact in protecting children, youth, and adults from the consequences of tobacco and e-cigarette use. In September 2019, the Academy sent a letter to President Trump and the First Lady supporting the Administration’s plan to remove all non-tobacco flavored e-cigarettes from the market, including mint and menthol flavors, and urging the President to reject tobacco industry pleas to weaken this proposal. Additionally, in February 2020, the Academy along with the Tobacco Partners Coalition, worked to advance H.R. 2339, the “Reversing the Youth Tobacco Epidemic Act,” through the U.S. House of Representatives. This bill would prohibit all flavored tobacco products, including e-cigarettes, increase the minimum age for purchasing tobacco products to 21, ban all non-face-to face sales for tobacco products, and protect kids from the marketing of tobacco products. Even though this bill did not pass, it set the stage for a FDA ruling in 2021 that banned menthol cigarettes. In October 2020, the AAO-HNS, together with 16 other medical professional societies and public health advocacy organizations, submitted an amicus brief in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to uphold the FDA’s ability to require graphic health warnings on cigarette packaging. The brief highlights that graphic warnings, as mandated by the FDA through the Final Rule “Required Warnings for Cigarette Packages and Advertisements,” are essential for effective communication to the public about the extraordinary range of health harms resultant from smoking.

2020: The Women in Otolaryngology (WIO) Section celebrated its 10-year anniversary.

Four Days in Boston: A History of the AAO-HNS Section for Women in

Otolaryngology (WIO), a movie commemorating the extensive effort in securing the section status in 2010, was premiered during the 2020 Virtual Annual Meeting. The virtual History of Women in Otolaryngology Exhibition was debuted in 2020.

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