Stepping up

Be heard: AOA seeks nominees for committee positions

The deadline for nominations, which should include a cover letter and CV, is April 1.

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Whether fervent about federal advocacy, research or osteopathic medicine’s history or minority health issues, osteopathic physicians and others with the passion and time to serve the profession at the national level should consider becoming nominees for the AOA’s bureau, committee and council positions, urges AOA President-elect Martin S. Levine, DO, MPH. The nomination process for 2011-12 opened on Feb. 16 with an announcement on the AOA’s website. The deadline for submitting nomination materials is April 1.

“By becoming involved in the AOA, DOs and other members of the osteopathic family can leverage and augment their leadership skills and knowledge to make a lasting impact on the osteopathic medical profession,” says Dr. Levine, who will present his list of appointees to the AOA Board of Trustees for approval during the Board’s annual meeting in July.

Members of the profession can view the open positions on each bureau, committee and council in the AOA’s 2011-12 Appointment Book.

So that each committee reflects the key stakeholders in its domain, some positions are designated for representatives of particular organizations or individuals with specified credentials. But a number of committees have open “member-at-large” positions. The length of appointments varies, but most appointments are for three years.

The Appointment Book includes descriptions of every committee and lists the individuals serving in each position. DOs can learn more about the various positions, including the expected time commitment, by e-mailing the committee secretaries listed in the book. “While most committees meet only once or twice a year, some require a considerable amount of preparation time on the part of members,” says AOA Associate Executive Director Mike Mallie. The AOA reimburses members for their committee-related travel expenses.

Submitting nominations

Individuals seeking to nominate themselves or others should send a short cover letter describing the nominee’s qualifications, along with the nominee’s curriculum vitae, to nominations@osteopathic.org. The letter should indicate the name of the desired bureau, committee or council and the position sought, if designated. Organizations should send three nominations in suggested order of preference for each designated open position.

Nominees may propose themselves for more than one committee but it’s best to limit the list to no more than three, Mallie advises. “To serve on a committee, be specific, and use your cover letter to explain why your expertise, experience and training prepare you well for that committee appointment,” he says.

“While education committees are popular, individuals should also look at other interest areas, especially if this is someone’s first foray into volunteering for the AOA,” Dr. Levine adds. “By working on an AOA council, committee or bureau, you can make a significant difference to the profession, health care in general and, most important, your patients.”

3 comments

  1. Please Listen!

    If you’ve actually talked to anyone that’s actually attended the meetings of those educational conferences, you’ll hear of how condescending the established members are to any criticism. I don’t believe that the “Blue-Ribbon Panels” and hiring of expensive experts at the AOA/NBOME hasn’t fooled anyone, the same hatred of change and youth persists. What are the odds that we have less than 5% attendance at next year’s AOA Conferences and that the AMA will have been convinced by enough of our own bad press and our doctors overrunning their programs to end our participation in theirs as we’ve done to them all along? It looks like finding more than 1 or 2 people to write articles per month is still difficult for this publication and you want us to have more association with it? Stop begging us to be on your committees, we’re too busy trying to salvage our careers in the wake of your actions.

    Please wake up or we’ll see Osteopathic Physician’s migrating to the Allopathic programs where they’re truly welcomed and will never come back from. Look at how Chiropractic came about and grew quickly to one now successful in their attempts to take over as the primary care physician that can take care of the patients’ medical as well as structural issues…Sound familiar? See you all (or maybe 71% of you) on the 14th!

  2. d.o.

    Well written Please Listen. Membership in the “colleges” is seen by many as legalized extortion. The conferences are attended only to meet requirements and otherwise are a waste of money. Question: What has the AOA done for you? Answer: little to nothing.

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