Announcing the 2023 Hall of Distinction Inductees
The AAO-HNS/F named 12 individuals to its Hall of Distinction.
*The Awards Committee is chaired by Albert L. Merati, MD, who recused himself during the discussion of his nomination.
Hall of Distinction (Pioneers)
E. Maxine Bennett, MD
After serving as the medical director of the Bureau for Handicapped Children (BHC) in the Wisconsin Department of Education from 1950 to 1953, she became a full-time faculty member at the University Medical School as associate professor in the Department of Surgery, Division of Otolaryngology, where she was the only woman in the department and five years later became chair in 1958. She retired from the University Medical School in 1978 and was given emerita status and recognized by the Wisconsin Medical Society as a 50-year member.
After retiring, Dr. Bennett became involved as the secretary and president of the Wisconsin Otolaryngology Society and vice president and chair of the Middle Section of the Triological Society (TRIO), where she achieved another milestone as the first woman elected to TRIO. In 1988, Dr. Bennett received the Wisconsin Medical Alumni Association Emeritus Professor Faculty Award.
Gus Gill, MD
From the time that Dr. Gill became chair in 1978 until his retirement in 2005, he was the only African American chair of an otolaryngology department in the United States. In addition to his 27-year tenure as chair, he also served in other leadership positions such a president of the Faculty Council, president of the University’s Academic Senate, and director of the International Health Institute. For his historic achievements and collaborative contributions, Dr. Gill received the CDU Legacy Leaders Award in 2014 as well as the President’s Medal in 2015 (posthumously).
Beyond his work at CDU, another key area of focus for Dr. Gill was the work of his international healthcare outreach programs, extending training and healthcare access in African nations and countries around the globe. Dr. Gill, who also contributed to the service of his country in the U.S. Army, earned his medical degree from the University of Michigan Medical School, where he also completed his residency.
Jack L. Gluckman, MD
He was born and raised in South Africa attending medical school at the University of Cape Town. After completing his otolaryngology residency at the University of Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, he joined the faculty at Groote Schuur Hospital in Cape Town and then subsequently entered private practice in Port Elizabeth. In 1977 Dr. Gluckman moved to Cincinnati for a fellowship in head and neck oncologic surgery and remained on the faculty at UC.
In addition to serving as AAO-HNS/F President, Dr. Gluckman also served as president of the American Board of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery, board member of the American Head and Neck Society, and vice president of the Triological Society. Internationally he was Regional Secretary for North America, Mexico, and the Caribbean for the International Federation of Otolaryngologic Societies.
Howard P. House, MD
In 1946 he founded what is known today as the House Institute, located in Los Angeles, California. Dr. House dedicated his more than six-decade-career to the advancement of hearing research and treatment. Under his guidance of scientific exploration, the House Ear Institute developed the first cochlear implant for commercial use and also became the first medical organization to adapt movie cameras and accessories for use with a surgical microscope to create professional medical training films.
Dr. House was a teacher and innovator whose accomplishments include perfecting the double blue line fenestration procedure, the wire loop technique to replace the stapes bone of the middle ear, and much more. In 1947 he directed the national study on industrial noise that set the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration hearing conservation standards. He also served as president of the Asociacion Panamericana de Otorinolaringologia, the American Otological Society, Salerni Collegium USC, and the Centurion Club of the Deafness Research Foundation. Dr. House was internationally recognized for his contributions to hearing science and received numerous honorary degrees and lifetime achievement awards.
Charles “Chuck” J. Krause, MD
Dr. Krause was also extremely involved in humanitarian outreach. Prior to his retirement, he established the Barbara and Charles Krause Lectureship in Humanities in Medicine. In 1999 he was awarded the Harold R. Johnson Diversity Service Award in recognition for his support and contributions to the promotion of cultural diversity with his establishment of the first departmental diversity committee.
During his career, he also served as president of the American Society of Head and Neck Surgery, the American Board of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery, and the American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. Dr. Krause served in the United States Air Force at the Randolph Air Force Base from 1963 to 1965.
Emily Lois Van Loon, MD
During the 1930s she worked with Chevalier Jackson, MD, at the famous Jackson Clinic at Temple University, and she is credited, along with Dr. Jackson, with the development of the bronchoscope and bronchoscopic removal of foreign bodies. Dr. Van Loon received the Elizabeth Blackwell Award from the New York Infirmary—an award presented annually to a woman physician who demonstrates conspicuous professional achievement in a previously male-dominated occupation and achievement and service.
Dr. Van Loon graduated in 1928 from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. She, along with Juanita Pearl Johns and Mary Campbell McIntyre were the first women to receive a Masters of Medical Science degree at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. The women’s undergraduate class of 1930 nominated Dr. Van Loon with three other women to the women’s Hall of Fame at the University of Pennsylvania.
Hall of Distinction (Living Legends)
Carol R. Bradford, MD, MS
Dr. Bradford is the dean of The Ohio State University College of Medicine and vice president for Health Sciences at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, a position she has held since 2020. Prior to that Dr. Bradford served as executive vice dean for academic affairs at the University of Michigan and chair of the Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery.
From 2012 to 2018, she held the Charles J. Krause, MD, Collegiate Professorship in Otolaryngology. Dr. Bradford has been recognized for her leadership and service, such as receiving the AAO-HNS Distinguished Service Award, the American Head and Neck Society (AHNS) Distinguished Service Award, and the Helen F. Krause Memorial Trailblazer Award, which recognizes an individual who has furthered the interests of women in the field of otolaryngology. Dr. Bradford was the first woman to be elected president of AHNS in 2012 and served as president of the Society of University Otolaryngologists Head & Neck Surgeons in 2017.
Charles W. Cummings, MD
As a life-long career educator and clinician, he worked on four long-term grants from the National Institutes of Health, primarily relating to basic training and research in otolaryngology. Dr. Cummings has served as director of the American Board of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery and as chair the Residency Review Committee in Otolaryngology.
He is also past president of the American Association for Academic Departments of Otolaryngology, the American Bronchoesophagological Association, as well as the American Head and Neck Society. Dr. Cummings earned his medical degree from the University of Virginia. Following service in the United States Air Force, he completed residency training in otolaryngology-head and neck surgery at Harvard Medical School of Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary.
G. Richard Holt, MD, MPH, MSE, MABE, D Bioethics
Dr. Holt’s clinical and research interests have been in trauma and cancer reconstruction, osseo-integrated implants, laryngology, congenital facial anomalies, global health and international medicine, aviation and space medicine, and bioethics. Following Dr. Holt’s tenure as EVP, the Holt Leadership Award was established to be given annually to a resident or fellow-in-training who best exemplifies the attributes of a young leader: honesty, integrity, fairness, advocacy, and enthusiasm.
Dr. Holt has received numerous awards and recognition including two AAO-HNS Distinguished Service Awards, the Jerome C. Goldstein, MD Public Service Award, and a Presidential Citation from K.J. Lee, MD, in 2014. Dr. Holt is a retired colonel in the United States Army Reserves.
Ronald B. Kuppersmith, MD, MBA
Not long out of residency he was instrumental in developing the vision for the AAO-HNSF education platform, AcademyU. This led to Dr. Kuppersmith being selected to serve as the inaugural AAO-HNS/F Coordinator for Internet and Information Technology. In furthering the advances on diversity and equity issues, and in working with Duane J. Taylor, MD, Dr. Kuppersmith was appointed as Chair of the Task Force on Diversity in 2007, which became a permanent committee a year later. He is currently on the Board of the American Board of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery. He has received numerous awards including the Helen F. Krause Trailblazer Award and a Presidential Citation from Dr. Taylor in 2020. He was also the named Guest Lecturer for the John Conley, MD Lecture on Medical Ethics in 2018 on surgical innovation.
Dr. Kuppersmith completed his residency in otolaryngology-head and neck surgery at Baylor College of Medicine and obtained an MBA from University of Washington.
Albert L. Merati, MD
Among numerous peer reviewed publications, he is the lead editor for the Textbook of Laryngology. Other leadership positions held by Dr. Merati include Chair of the AAO-HNS/F Awards Committee and senior examiner for the American Board of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery. He also served on the councils of the Triological Society and the American Broncho-Esophagological Association.
Dr. Merati completed his otolaryngology training at the University of California, San Diego, including one year of National Institute of Health research training. Dr. Merati then went to Vanderbilt University to study with Robert H. Ossoff, DMD, MD, a premier training institution for academic laryngologists, including working with James L. Netterville, MD, on laryngeal framework surgery. Among countless awards and recognitions, Dr. Merati has earned two AAO-HNS Distinguished Service Awards.
Duane J. Taylor, MD
Early in his career, 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/F Board of Governors. Members of the Otolaryngology Section were instrumental in the creation of the William Harry Barnes Society. Dr. Taylor represented the Society for approximately 15 years. In this role Dr. Taylor helped start and fund the AAO-HNS/F Harry Barnes Society Endowed Leadership Grant and the Diversity Endowment. He was ultimately named Chair of the newly formed AAO-HNS Diversity Committee.
Dr. Taylor completed his otolaryngology residency at Los Angeles County King/Drew Medical Center. He has received countless recognitions and honors including the AAO-HNS Distinguished Service Award in 2014 and a Presidential Citation from Dr. Kuppersmith in 2010.