The Call of Spring
David R. Nielsen, MD, AAO-HNS/F EVP/CEO For many of us along the Eastern Seaboard, this past winter has been relatively warm and mild. By the time you read this, spring will have formally begun, blossoms will be turning the trees and shrubs into palettes of multi-colored splendor, and preparations to enjoy the warmer weather, and even plans for summer outings, will be under way. Here at your Academy headquarters in Alexandria, VA, we are already putting the finishing touches on our program for September 9-12 in Washington, DC, which you will see outlined in the preliminary program in this Bulletin. Each year the wonderful pageantry of research, clinical instruction, scientific presentations, and miniseminars is blended by the hard work of our Coordinators for Scientific Program and Instruction Course Program and their committees into the Annual Meeting & OTO EXPO that is such an essential part in the professional life of every otolaryngologist. In addition to the critical clinical content, your Academy and Foundation boards of directors, elected leaders, committees, staff, and other societies and friends organize essential leadership, sub-specialty society, governance, planning, allied health, and development meetings to carry on the work of fostering excellence in healthcare. The tremendous support and collegiality of our international fellows, members, honored guests, and friends solidifies this meeting as the premier gathering for otolaryngologists worldwide. Opportunities for social interaction also abound with alumni events and reunions of many kinds taking place during the evening and social hours. There is no better opportunity anywhere in the world for the breadth and depth of clinical and societal interaction than can be found each year at our annual meeting. Having our meeting in Washington, DC, in 2012 is especially auspicious, considering that this is a presidential election year. Although it is difficult to predict the topics of debate and the nature of campaign discussions six months from now as people are preparing to go to the polls, we can be assured that the economy in general, and the cost of healthcare in specific, will be at the top of the list. Once again, the entire house of medicine must endure a short-term “patch” to the “UN”-Sustainable Growth Rate formula (SGR) during 2012, only to face the specter of huge reductions in payment for services on January 1, 2013, unless Congress acts once and for all to replace the SGR with a fair and viable solution. We are not just sitting on the sidelines watching the debate, nor are we limiting our involvement to vocally objecting to unworkable proposals. The Academy is proactively engaged in addressing quality improvement in the delivery of otolaryngology care and specifically identifying gaps in knowledge and delivery of care, overuse of certain types of care, and ways in which we can more effectively provide better value for the care we provide. Much of this work is being carried out specifically for otolaryngology by our Research & Quality and Health Policy Departments, by our Patient Safety and Quality Improvement Committee, Outcomes Research and Evidence-Based Medicine Committee, Advisory Committee on Quality, Guidelines Development Task Force, and the many content committees, which systematically contribute suggestions, as well as review material and proposals from other sources. In the past, health policy groups, such as our Physician Payment Policy Workgroup (3P) and BOG Socioeconomic, and Grassroots Committee would discuss policy considerations and make recommendations to the boards for action. Today, many of our clinical content committees are also effectively using their clinical expertise and evidence to inform our health policy directions and decisions. I encourage each of you to continue to make attendance and participation in our annual meeting a priority for your professional life. At this year’s meeting, you will see increasing evidence of the exceptional value of Academy membership and meeting attendance through the focus and targeting of educational content to address quality improvement, documentation, use of technological accelerators of care, such as electronic health records, new devices and drugs, and systems approaches to delivering care, and preparation for participation in Maintenance of Certification (MOC) for our board certification through the American Board of Otolaryngology and state licensure requirements. The education you receive through the clinical content of the annual meeting, and through other Academy/Foundation educational offerings, is the best value hour for hour, and dollar for dollar, that you can receive anywhere in the world. As we share this fall’s preliminary program with you, we urge each of you to increase your involvement in, and expand your understanding of, the roles we, as practicing otolaryngologists, must play in healthcare reform. Do this by planning to register early and attend the best meeting in the world this fall in Washington, DC. I hope to see you all there!
David R. Nielsen, MD, AAO-HNS/F EVP/CEO

For many of us along the Eastern Seaboard, this past winter has been relatively warm and mild. By the time you read this, spring will have formally begun, blossoms will be turning the trees and shrubs into palettes of multi-colored splendor, and preparations to enjoy the warmer weather, and even plans for summer outings, will be under way. Here at your Academy headquarters in Alexandria, VA, we are already putting the finishing touches on our program for September 9-12 in Washington, DC, which you will see outlined in the preliminary program in this Bulletin. Each year the wonderful pageantry of research, clinical instruction, scientific presentations, and miniseminars is blended by the hard work of our Coordinators for Scientific Program and Instruction Course Program and their committees into the Annual Meeting & OTO EXPO that is such an essential part in the professional life of every otolaryngologist.
In addition to the critical clinical content, your Academy and Foundation boards of directors, elected leaders, committees, staff, and other societies and friends organize essential leadership, sub-specialty society, governance, planning, allied health, and development meetings to carry on the work of fostering excellence in healthcare. The tremendous support and collegiality of our international fellows, members, honored guests, and friends solidifies this meeting as the premier gathering for otolaryngologists worldwide. Opportunities for social interaction also abound with alumni events and reunions of many kinds taking place during the evening and social hours. There is no better opportunity anywhere in the world for the breadth and depth of clinical and societal interaction than can be found each year at our annual meeting.
Having our meeting in Washington, DC, in 2012 is especially auspicious, considering that this is a presidential election year. Although it is difficult to predict the topics of debate and the nature of campaign discussions six months from now as people are preparing to go to the polls, we can be assured that the economy in general, and the cost of healthcare in specific, will be at the top of the list. Once again, the entire house of medicine must endure a short-term “patch” to the “UN”-Sustainable Growth Rate formula (SGR) during 2012, only to face the specter of huge reductions in payment for services on January 1, 2013, unless Congress acts once and for all to replace the SGR with a fair and viable solution.
We are not just sitting on the sidelines watching the debate, nor are we limiting our involvement to vocally objecting to unworkable proposals. The Academy is proactively engaged in addressing quality improvement in the delivery of otolaryngology care and specifically identifying gaps in knowledge and delivery of care, overuse of certain types of care, and ways in which we can more effectively provide better value for the care we provide. Much of this work is being carried out specifically for otolaryngology by our Research & Quality and Health Policy Departments, by our Patient Safety and Quality Improvement Committee, Outcomes Research and Evidence-Based Medicine Committee, Advisory Committee on Quality, Guidelines Development Task Force, and the many content committees, which systematically contribute suggestions, as well as review material and proposals from other sources. In the past, health policy groups, such as our Physician Payment Policy Workgroup (3P) and BOG Socioeconomic, and Grassroots Committee would discuss policy considerations and make recommendations to the boards for action. Today, many of our clinical content committees are also effectively using their clinical expertise and evidence to inform our health policy directions and decisions.
I encourage each of you to continue to make attendance and participation in our annual meeting a priority for your professional life. At this year’s meeting, you will see increasing evidence of the exceptional value of Academy membership and meeting attendance through the focus and targeting of educational content to address quality improvement, documentation, use of technological accelerators of care, such as electronic health records, new devices and drugs, and systems approaches to delivering care, and preparation for participation in Maintenance of Certification (MOC) for our board certification through the American Board of Otolaryngology and state licensure requirements. The education you receive through the clinical content of the annual meeting, and through other Academy/Foundation educational offerings, is the best value hour for hour, and dollar for dollar, that you can receive anywhere in the world.
As we share this fall’s preliminary program with you, we urge each of you to increase your involvement in, and expand your understanding of, the roles we, as practicing otolaryngologists, must play in healthcare reform. Do this by planning to register early and attend the best meeting in the world this fall in Washington, DC. I hope to see you all there!