Legacy of Excellence Digital Flipbook

LEGACY OF EXCELLENCE: DUANE J. TAYLOR, MD PRESIDENT FROM 2019 – 2020

M y earliest interest in otolaryngology came when I was a medical student,” Duane J. Taylor, MD, explained. “I had done a plastic surgery research project while I was in medical school. I was involved with an organization called the Student National Medical Association, and I loved head and neck anatomy. At one of the SNMA conferences I [attended] someone talked to me about the area of otolaryngology because we really didn’t have any rotations in medical school [in] otolaryngology.” Dr. Taylor completed a rotation in otolaryngology during his last year at King/Drew Medical Center in Los Angeles, now known as Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Hospital, which is where he would complete his residency. “The chair of [the otolaryngology] department, Dr. Gus Gill, was very influential in inspiring to me and wanted me to consider the specialty and I ended up doing just that.” Not long after completing his training and fellowship, Dr. Taylor was elected by the Otolaryngology Section of the National Medical Association to represent them as a governor to the AAO-HNS Board of Governors. Members of the Otolaryngology Section were instrumental in the creation of the William Harry Barnes Society, established to honor the legacy of William Harry Barnes, MD, the first African American board-certified medical specialist. The group of African American physicians met during the Annual Meeting to connect residents and practicing physicians, and Dr. Taylor represented the Society for approximately 15 years. At the 2010 AAO-HNSF Annual Meeting in Boston, Massachusetts, the Society, in concert with the AAO HNSF Development Committee, established the AAO HNSF Harry Barnes Society Endowed Leadership “

Grant. In addition to leading this effort, Dr. Taylor helped start and fund the Diversity Endowment and was ultimately named Chair of the Diversity Committee. “I had the chance to interact with some of our leadership, be inspired, and feel a sense of passion and commitment for the organization… everything from membership to socioeconomic rules and regulations. I was an integral part of starting [the Diversity Committee] thanks to the commitment by the leadership of our organization,” he recalled. As his participation and leadership in the AAO HNS/F grew, Dr. Taylor was invited to be a guest on the

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