Invited Speaker

Daniel Chelius, MD, FAAP, FACS

Dr. Daniel Chelius, MD, FAAP, FACS, is an associate professor of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery at Baylor College of Medicine (BCM) where he practices pediatric head and neck surgery and thyroid surgery at Texas Children’s Hospital. Dr. Chelius graduated from Baylor College of Medicine with honors in 2005 before completing Otolaryngology residency at BCM in 2010 and pediatric otolaryngology fellowship at the University of Kansas/Children’s Mercy Hospital. Dr. Chelius is the immediate pass coordinator for the American Academy of  Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery Annual Meetings from 2021-2024. For his innovative efforts in education and community building in these meetings following the first years of the COVID-19 pandemic, he was honored with the 2023 AAO-HNS #HeForShe Award and the 2024 AAOHNS EVP/CEO Above and Beyond Award. Dr. Chelius has served as President of the Houston Society of Otolaryngology, Chair of the AAOHNS Young Physician’s Section, and many appointed positions on national committees, taskforces and guideline development initiatives. While Dr. Chelius began his Houston practice as part of a comprehensive otolaryngology practice in Houston, he returned to academic practice at Texas Children’s Hospital (TCH) in 2015 to found and direct a new pediatric head and neck tumor program. Embracing a philosophy of seamless, collaborative multidisciplinary care and decision making, Dr. Chelius leads a team of clinicians from across medical, surgical, and ancillary specialties to care for children with complex head and neck tumors through outcomes-driven care pathways. In addition to complex tumor care, Dr. Chelius is a sought-after general pediatric otolaryngologist, having been elected annually to Texas Super Doctors since 2013 and having received multiple patient care and satisfaction awards at TCH.  Dr. Chelius is BCM’s past-councilor for Alpha Omega Alpha and has received multiple trainee teaching awards and BCM’s 2023 Young Alumnus Award. Dr. Chelius’s greatest inspirations are his wife, Dr. Amber Pyeatt, and their three children.

Course Faculty

John Krouse, PhD, MBA, MD, FAAOA – Course Co-Director

Dr. John Krouse is a retired professor, former chair of otolaryngology at the Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University, and former dean of the School of Medicine and executive vice president for Health Affairs at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley.

Dr. Krouse graduated from Carnegie-Mellon University, and received his PhD in clinical psychology from the University of Rochester. He earned his MD from Harvard Medical School. Dr. Krouse also received an MBA from the Fox School of Business at Temple University.

Dr. Krouse completed his internship in surgery at Beth Israel Hospital and his residency training in otolaryngology-head and neck surgery at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary/Harvard Medical School in Boston. He is board certified in otolaryngology.

 

 

Jennifer Villwock, MD, FAAOA – Course Co-Director

Dr. Villwock is a Professor of Otolaryngology, a fellowship trained rhinologist & anterior skull base surgeon, the Section Chief of Otolaryngology at the Kansas City Veterans Affairs Medical Center, and the Vice Chair for Research for the Department of Otolaryngology at the University of Kansas. She is passionate about accessible innovation to improve patient care. Examples of this include her research, which has led to the creation and patenting of AROMA (Affordable, Rapid, Olfactory Measurement Array). This is a novel objective olfactory test that is significantly more cost effective and designed for real-time integration into a clinical workflow. Using AROMA as a noninvasive biomarkers of dementia and cognitive decline is the focus of her recently awarded $3.8M grant from the NIH. She has also been awarded a $2.5M grant from the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Program to study multisensory dysfunction as a predictor of traumatic brain injury severity and recovery trajectory over time. Dr. Villwock’s work in olfaction has previously been funded by the AAOA to understand allergy’s impact on olfaction and the potential to use olfactory changes to guide allergy treatment. Dr. Villwock has also created the Activities Based Checks (ABCs) of Pain, an infographic-style functional pain scale to improve communication about pain between patients and their care teams while decreasing the cognitive load associated with the completion and interpretation of existing pain surveys. She was selected as a finalist in the NIH National Institute on Aging’s inaugural Health Aging Challenge and Entrepreneurial Bootcamp for her work with AROMA. Dr. Villwock subsequently won the Audience Choice Award at the 2023 Alzheimer’s Association pitch competition and was a finalist at the AARP AgeTech Collaborative at ViVE2023 Making Aging Easier
pitch competition.

 

Dana Crosby, MD, MPH, FAAOA

Dana L. Crosby, MD, MPH is Chair of the Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery at Southern Illinois University School of Medicine in Springfield, IL. She also serves as the Residency Program Director, Director of Rhinology and Endoscopic Skull Base Surgery, and Director of Otolaryngic Allergy. ​ Her clinical interests include inflammatory rhinology, sinonasal tumors, endoscopic skull base surgery, endoscopic orbital surgery, and the relationship of allergy to diseases of the paranasal sinuses.

 

Christie DeMason, MD, FAAOA

Christine DeMason, MD, FAAOA is an Associate Professor and the division chief of General Otolaryngology at UNC-Chapel Hill. Dr. DeMason is currently the Medical Student Director for UNC Otolaryngology as well as Associate Program Director for the residency. Her clinical focus is sleep surgery and allergy, and her research focus is on medical education. She currently serves on many national committees including the AAO-HNS General and Sleep Education committee and the AAOA Patient & Professional Relations committee. She is the current chair of the AAOA Socioeconomic Committee.

 

 

 

Michelle Liu, MD, MPH

Michelle Ferdinand Liu, MD, MPH is a Fellow if the AAOA and a Comprehensive Otolaryngologist in private practice. She is an alumna of the Warren Alpert Medical School at Brown University and has a Master of Public Health from the Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health. She is a retired veteran of the United States Navy who served as a physician in the military for 21 years. She completed general surgery internship and was stationed with the Marine Corps in Okinawa, Japan prior to her Otolaryngology residency training at the Naval Medical Center in Portsmouth, VA. Dr. Liu has practiced Otolaryngology overseas in Italy and has launched sublingual allergy practices in multiple states on the east coast. She has been a C-suite leader with a passion for Quality Improvement and Patient Safety for the past ten years. In addition to her clinical practice and healthcare executive engagement, Dr. Liu coaches healthcare providers in patient-centered communication and leadership. In her spare time, she enjoys gardening, swimming, and spending time with family.

 

Haidy Marzouk, MD, FAAOA

Dr. Marzouk joined St. Joseph Health in 2022 after 7 years at SUNY Upstate Medical Center. She maintains her voluntary faculty position as Associate Professor at SUNY Upstate. She has been a fellow of the AAOA since 2018. She completed her residency training at SUNY Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn, NY in 2011. She completed her MBA from University of Delaware with a concentration in healthcare management. During her career, Dr. Marzouk has received numerous honors and awards including outstanding surgical research, performance as a resident, faculty who make a difference, teaching awards, and is a member of the Academy of Upstate Educators. While at SUNY Upstate, Dr. Marzouk founded an otolaryngologic allergy practice within her department and has integrated it into resident education with a formal curriculum. She also developed a niche of care for treating children with sinusitis related to Cystic Fibrosis. She also participates in the education of the medical community working with and teaching students, residents, and interdisciplinary teams. She brings a gentle smile, heartfelt compassion, and excellent surgical skill to each and every patient interaction.

As a native New Yorker, she is passionate about setting a standard of excellent medical and surgical care to her home community. This is exemplified by her participation in both numerous administrative committees within the hospital in addition to her quality of clinical care.

 

Ilka Naumann, MD, FAAOA

Dr. Ilka Naumann is board certified in Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Otology/Neurotology and otolaryngic allergy and fellowship trained in Integrative Medicine which gives her a unique perspective on health and disease.

With her Germanic analytical mind and a deep connection to nature, Dr. Naumann was drawn to medicine since her early childhood. Seeking a deep foundation she completed her general medical training at Humboldt university in Berlin and graduated Magna cum Laude with a medical thesis in human genetics.

Passionate about her work and now with almost 2 decades of experience from her residency training in Otolaryngology at Indiana University and a fellowship in Neurotology from the prestigious Michigan Ear Institute, Dr. Naumann joined the group and built a distinctive otologic allergy practices.

Having recognized the connectedness of humans in their environment and the body’s responses, a fellowship in integrative medicine with Andrew Weil gave her the tools to apply a much needed holistic approach to diseases of the ear. She is uniquely positioned to understand the complexity of ear diseases that can arise as results of broader regional or even systemic diseases.

Dr. Naumann has published and authored numerous peer reviewed publications, book chapters and presented at well over 100 meetings nationally and internationally.

She is a fellow of the American College of Surgeons, American Academy of Otolaryngology/Head and Neck Surgery and Otolaryngic Allergy. As an Associate Professor at Michigan State University, as well as Oakland University she teaches medical students, residents, and fellows.

 

Alpen Patel, MD, FAAOA

Dr. Alpen Patel was raised in Katy, Texas, & attended Tulane University. He later attended Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas, where he obtained his M.D. with Honors. Dr. Patel then completed his internship and residency in otolaryngology- head & neck surgery at the University of Minnesota Hospitals in Minneapolis-St. Paul.  In 2002, he joined the faculty at George Washington University in Washington, D.C., where he started the George Washington University Allergy & Sinus Center. Subsequently, he joined the Emory University Department of Otolaryngology in 2006 & helped form the Emory Sinus, Nasal & Allergy Center. Dr. Patel then joined the Mid-Atlantic Permanente Medical Group (MAPMG) in 2009. At MAPMG, he served as the Lead Physician for Hospital Utilization for Baltimore as well as a Medical Director for the organization. In 2019, Dr. Patel joined Total ENT Care, a private practice in the Baltimore area. In March 2025, he will be starting a new ENT, Sinus & Allergy Center in Mount Airy, Maryland. Dr. Patel is Board Certified in Otolaryngology as well as Sleep Medicine. He is also a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons (FACS) & a Fellow of the American Academy of Otolaryngic Allergy (AAOA).  He has served in the American Academy of Otolaryngology- Head & Neck Surgery (AAO-HNS) as part of the Allergy, Asthma, & Immunology Committee, as well as the AMA delegation. Dr. Patel has also served as a member of the AAOA Board of Directors for over a decade. His past roles include Socioeconomic Chair, Treasurer, & President for the organization. Dr. Patel & his wife have two sons and a dog.

 

William Reisacher, MD, FAAOA

William Reisacher, MD FAAOA is a board-certified otolaryngologist, specializing in the diagnosis and treatment of airborne and food allergies in children and adults. Dr. Reisacher graduated from The Mount Sinai School of
Medicine in 1994, with Distinction in Research, and completed his Otolaryngology residency at The New York Eye & Ear Infirmary in 2000. He is currently on the full–time faculty of the Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery Department at Weill Cornell Medical College / New York-Presbyterian Hospital in New York City, where he is a Professor and the Director of Allergy Services. Dr. Reisacher is a Fellow of the American Academy of Otolaryngic Allergy (AAOA). He has published numerous chapters and research papers, holds patents in the area of allergy diagnostics, and has presented his work at both national and international meetings. An Honor Award recipient for the American Academy of Otolaryngology – Head & Neck Surgery, Dr. Reisacher has served on the Allergy & Immunology Committee, Board of Governors and the Board of Directors of the AAOA. He has also been an instructor and mini-seminar moderator for both academies. Dr. Reisacher has appeared on national and local news broadcasts and podcasts, providing commentary on ENT/allergy topics, and has founded companies in the biopharmaceutical, biotechnology and digital healthtech spaces. He lives in Manhattan with his wife and three children.

 

Keith Sale, MD, FAAOA

Keith Sale, MD, FAAOA currently serves as the Vice President for Ambulatory Services and Interim Chief Medical Informatics Officer at the University of Kansas Health System. Dr. Sale holds the rank of Associate Professor and has served as Residency Program Director and Vice Chair of Clinical Operations within his department.

Dr. Sale is a Fellow and active member in the American Academy of Otolaryngic Allergy (AAOA) where he has completed numerous presentations. He serves as an oral boards examiner for the AAOA and has been on the AAOA Board for the past three years. Dr. Sale has served as the AAOA Treasurer and is currently the President.

 

Robert Stachler, MD, FAAOA

After being in academics for over 20 yrs, Dr. Stachler started his private practice in Otolaryngic Allergy, Laryngology, and Comprehensive Otolaryngology in 2018.  He has been involved in the AAOA for over 25 yrs and has been a faculty member of the Basic and Advanced courses.  He has also given lectures for the resident courses in the past in Las Colinas (near Dallas).  He has been a perennial contributor to annual AAOA Courses ,and he has given many talks on various topics including Laryngeal Allergy, Eosinophillic Esophagitis, Reflux, Covid 19 Restart: Safe Practices in the Office, and Starting and Maintaining an Allergy Practice.  He has numerous publications in these areas and has spoken nationally and internationally about them.  He has been on the board as an At-Large Member Secretary, and as the Educational Coordinator (currently).