Legacy of Excellence Digital Flipbook

LEGACY OF EXCELLENCE

Incremental Change for the Future Face of Otolaryngology Angela M. Powell, MD, Chair 125 Strong Campaign, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, and Chair, Women in Otolaryngology Section, 2019-2020 are being bandied about in our social lexicon, whether selected or elected to take up this cause, they (we) do so at a personal cost.

otolaryngology, generational workforce changes, new technologies, and future models of care delivery. While healthcare delivery system reforms have been ongoing, there will be an accelerated emphasis on alternative payment models (APMs), flexible accountable care organizations, and progressive affirmation of the value-based payment system. The trend away from traditional fee-for-service (FFS) models toward FFS linked to quality and value is well suited to otolaryngology given the complexity and subspecialty nature of our field and the fact that as a specialty we represent a small percentage of the total annual national healthcare spend. to the next DEI session to ultimately benefit all. So, you ask, how does tomorrow look? It starts with recognizing where we are and where we need to be? How do we understand and correct the bias that adversely affect so many professional activities? Having more one-on-one conversations with people you respect and trust, being inquisitive, growing in your own knowledge of the difficulties faced by others, supporting and sponsoring those like me in your charge when able, and knowing that your seemingly small effort can make a substantial difference. In the words of Mother Teresa, I close with the thought of “doing small things with great love” in otolaryngology. Positive change will happen incrementally. As the individuals being asked to revisit the slights, personal affronts, rejections, dismissals, and the like ascribed to our difference in settings where DEI topics are often presented to a less than receptive audience, we experience repetitive emotional trauma. This trauma is an unintended consequence of seeking system improvements and meaningful change toward inclusive diversity and equity through reliving painful past life events as a resident or medical student, as your mentee, and as your friend. As these wounds are re-opened to teach timely and meaningful lessons to the majority on the impact of bias on the leaky pipeline to full professorship in academic practice for otolaryngologists, for example; the emotionally raw and vulnerable subspecialty surgeon emerges within a space where we naturally are closed and often are compelled to practice self-preservation. Understandably, it is impractical though likely necessary to continue to subject ourselves

The picture painted of the future of the specialty by Dr. Setzen in the first of this series of articles on a “Legacy of Excellence” in otolaryngology primarily touched on the

are just a few examples of disruptive efforts to harness the potential efficiencies of big data, machine learning, virtual reality (VR), and telemedicine with current practice patterns in order to provide efficient and high-quality care with improved access and patient convenience. Public Policy and Advocacy Healthcare policy and advocacy will continue to be driven by the imperative to lower the cost of healthcare while increasing affordable access to all Americans. There are limited financial resources without major revenue restructuring. Several other factors complicate this process, including lack of political consensus on direction, physician workforce shortage in unique and far-reaching perspectives on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) is to reflect on my own path wondering how the future direction will diverge for the next generation of otolaryngologists who are identified either by outward characteristics or by self categorization as “different.” We are living in a time of heightened awareness of difference. Recognition has naturally opened a dialog with the discovery that those voices placed in the forefront to represent the minority, those able to participate in the difficult discussions regarding race, gender, sex and sexual identity, inequity, prejudice, micro- and macroaggressions, covert and overt racism, discrimination, and the many other terms that practice modalities, the growth opportunities, the impact of healthcare policy, and advocacy on the delivery of care, technology, and transformation. By all accounts, the areas mentioned engender thoughts of the mechanics of what we do every day within our varied practices. In counter-distinction, this segment, I hope, will touch on the heart, draw from more of the “why” behind our commitment to continue redefining the “how” that drives our interactions with our colleagues, our patients, and the healthcare system as a whole every day. To relay a future outlook for the specialty communicating

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