Board of Governors (BOG): Engaging, Building New Connections, and Advancing the Specialty

Lance A. Manning, MD, Immediate Past Chair, BOG

Following the conclusion of my term as the 39th Board of Governors (BOG) Chair, I wanted to take a few moments to express my gratitude for the opportunity to serve as Chair and work alongside the members of the BOG Executive Council and the BOG Committees. As COVID-19 continued, we never let the pandemic interrupt the fine work of the BOG. We found new ways to engage, built new connections, and continued to advance the specialty.

Here are some of the significant accomplishments over the last year.

LanceA. Manning, MD
Immediate Past Chair, BOGOutreach and Engagement with ASCENT. For the past couple of years, AAO-HNS/F has partnered with ASCENT (Administrator Support Community for ENT) on collaborative membership marketing activities. BOG initiated engagement conversations with ASCENT leadership around payment and coding policy and advocacy efforts. So much learning and resource sharing can take place from both sides. Collaboration and continuing dialogue between both organizations are vital, especially to Academy members working in private practice. 

Virtual Leadership Forum & BOG Spring Meeting. The Zoom AAO-HNS/F Virtual Leadership Forum & BOG Spring Meeting took place on April 17, 2021, with 210 participants. The conference featured sessions on a wide breadth of advocacy and policy issues, a futuristic view of healthcare economics, analysis of the business of medicine, as well as learning training and best practices. The presenters were a prominent lineup of healthcare and healthcare economics luminaries, including entrepreneur Mark Cuban; Wendell Primus, the senior policy advisor on budget and health for Speaker Nancy Pelosi; Congressman Larry Buchson, MD (R-IN); diversity and organizational change expert Gabrielle Felder; and then president of the American Medical Association, Susan Bailey, MD. The conference participants rated the conference as 82% favorable or very favorable. 

At this time, we are planning for the AAO-HNS/F 2022 Leadership Forum & BOG Spring Meeting to be in person at the Westin, Alexandria, Virginia, April 8-10, 2022. It is expected that Capitol Hill Day will be part of the activities. 

Society Management Tool Kit. The BOG’s Governance and Society Engagement Committee worked to develop a new Society Management Tool Kit that was presented at the Leadership Forum and accessible here: https://www.entnet.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/StateandLocalSocietyManagementToolkit.pptx.

The Society Management Tool Kit provides guidance on organization administration and governance principles, legislative and advocacy functions, and planning efforts associated with educational and CME programming. The Society Management Tool Kit joins several other tool kits developed over the past few years aimed at assisting regional and local level BOG entities. 

Business of Medicine Strategic Focus. The BOG has heavily assisted in the Academy’s increased strategic focus on the Business of Medicine. Recently, a new position was created for the Academy’s Advocacy team that will emphasize Business of Medicine policy development. Additionally, the BOG held discussions with ASCENT leadership on the development of a Business of Medicine curriculum combining the elements of the current ASCENT certification with refinements related to employment negotiation, quality and performance measures, and strategic thinking components. 

Seamless transitions are also part of good BOG governance. Troy D. Woodard, MD, took over as the 40th BOG Chair on October 1. Working closely with Troy over the last year, we are all looking forward to his leadership as Chair. 

The mark of a strong organization is the talent of incoming leaders. Having worked with the professionals in the slate of candidates for several years, I can attest to the BOG’s continuing strength. 

Thank you again for allowing me to serve all of you as BOG Chair. It was one of the greatest honors of my professional life in otolaryngology.