CEO Update, November 2024

“Gratitude is the inward feeling of kindness received. Thankfulness is the natural impulse to express that feeling. Thanksgiving is the following of that impulse.” — Henry Van Dyke

According to LinkedIn, I just had a work anniversary. Work anniversaries, like Thanksgiving, can get overlooked and underappreciated. Luckily, the crisp air of Fall helps me to stop and take measure. If Henry Van Dyke is right, I have received a lot of kindness. Fortunate does not seem to match the impact having the honor of managing the AAOA has truly been. In a yin yang fashion, I think I am guilty of pushing the AAOA to new innovative heights, and the AAOA pushes me just as hard to achieve beyond my own expectations. I want thank all of you who have been willing to take risks and implement new programming and services to help our members. Maybe it is really the Grateful Dead I should be quoting with the “long, strange, trip….” Thank you!

Continuing in the giving spirit, our leadership really gave their all with this recent Annual Meeting. The workgroup of Rob Stachler, Christie DeMason, Peter Filip, Haidy Marzouk, Arvin Rao, Claudia Ventura, and the rest of AAOA staff team really put it out of the park. For those who missed the Annual Meeting, you still have time to register — free for members as part of your dues —and access the on-demand content (and earn CME and Continuing Certification credit before year end). You are in for some great content built around the practical aspects of how it all applies in day-to-day practice.

Meanwhile, Jen Villwock and Jack Krouse are already gearing up for the new Explorers Course 2025. Intended to advance physician competence and performance to result in improved patient care outcomes, this new course format will take deep dives marry core concepts with the practicalities of patient care. For 2025, participants should demonstrate competence in the evaluation and management of the allergic patient, understand how conditions such as otologic disease and sleep apnea interact with allergy and benefit from its management, how incorporating advanced techniques in airway and sleep can add value for your practice, what’s on the horizon for the medical and surgical management of these conditions, and special topics such as managing allergy in the geriatric patient and how global weather extremes impact allergy and the airway. This year’s course will also include a hands-on ultrasound skills session. Don’t forget to attend the course-concluding slime-making lab! Key allergy and immunology concepts will be reinforced as attendees compete using different proportions of
ingredients (glue, activator, fluid), “cytokines” (slime charms), and colors to create the best airway disease mucous. It is not too early to register and make plans to join us in Vail for the live component.

As we initiate our 2025 retention efforts (thank you to those who have already renewed!), your feedback is core to our success. Have questions on the new Affinity program and how the cost savings play out across antigen and 38 other vendors? Looking for tools to train staff? Our stacks, curated content is easily consumable chunks, are a great solution. USP Compliance needs? We have resources for that too. Beyond these tools, what would make an impact for you? If you have an idea, need, or suggestions, we would love to hear from you ([email protected]). I would love to hear from you ([email protected]). The innovations that have gotten us to hear all started with a member idea. Can’t wait to see what new ideas you share to take us to the next level.