Published: July 28, 2016

Candidate Statements | BOG Candidate: Chair-Elect | Sanjay R. Parikh, MD

I have had the opportunity to work with the last eight BOG chairs, all of whom exhibited outstanding leadership experience, listening skills, and communication ability. The BOG chair should also understand the Academy infrastructure and strategic plan.


Sanjay R. Parikh, MDSanjay R. Parikh, MDWhat qualities does the chair of the BOG need to be effective in the position?

I have had the opportunity to work with the last eight BOG chairs, all of whom exhibited outstanding leadership experience, listening skills, and communication ability. The BOG chair should also understand the Academy infrastructure and strategic plan. I believe my own leadership experience has made me integrally familiar with our Academy’s priorities. My prior positions include:

  • BOG Secretary
  • BOG Executive Committee
  • BOG Vice Chair, Socioeconomic and Grassroots Committee
  • BOG Committee Member: Socioeconomic and Grassroots, Media and Public Relations
  • AAO-HNS Board of Directors, Young Physician
  • AAO-HNS Strategic Planning Participant
  • AAO-HNS Chair, Young Physicians Committee
  • AAO-HNS Committee Member, Journal Reviewer, State Tracker, and Miniseminar, Course, & Research Presenter

In addition to experience, the BOG chair must carefully listen to BOG members, understand valuable opinions, and advocate for these opinions across all levels of Academy leadership. Finally, the BOG chair should be able to recognize, develop, and mentor future Academy leaders.

How would you change the BOG to make it more successful?

I would focus BOG efforts on the upcoming physician payment reform so that we may support and sustain our membership through this rapidly changing healthcare climate.

In April 2015, President Obama signed into law the inception of the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS), which is a new paradigm for how Medicare (and other aligned insurers) will pay physicians with an included measure of “quality.” I would like to see the BOG:

  • Advocate to Medicare for a simple, fair, and transparent quality measure
  • Engage membership to help develop our own Academy quality data registry, RegentSM
  • Use Regent to find out what Members think is a fair quality measure for otolaryngology

The BOG is a unique Academy organization that represents all facets of otolaryngology: state/regional societies and national specialty societies. This brain trust must focus on optimizing payment systems to meet our Members’ needs and to protect the future of otolaryngology-head and neck surgery.

The positions of Chair-Elect, Secretary, and Member-at-Large will be elected by the voting members of the BOG (i.e., Governors or Alternate Governors pursuant to Article III, Sections 2 and 3) present at the fall meeting of the BOG General Assembly. No proxy votes are allowed.


More from August 2016 - Vol. 35, No. 7