Thank you to the Academy staff
First Person
By Misha Rosenbach, MD, March 1, 2021
DermWorld’s First Person column offers Academy members the opportunity to share their personal reflections about how dermatology is changing and how they’ve adapted. Dr. Rosenbach submitted this column in the immediate aftermath of the disruption of the certification of U.S. election results on Jan. 6.
This has been a truly challenging period of time, with a raging pandemic on top of a nation grappling with long-overdue reflections on social justice, race, and equity, topped by a political maelstrom. I have been meaning to write this piece since the spring of 2020, but one crisis after another has pulled my time or attention. However, this week, as a misinformation-fueled mob stormed the Capitol, one small positive news item reminded me why I felt this piece is important to write. As extremists were rampaging and lives were in danger, some Senate staffers had the presence of mind to rescue the boxes containing the Electoral ballots to certify the Electoral College votes affirming the election of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. That represented a striking commitment to duty and an impressive focus during a crisis. I am glad their actions were highlighted and praised — but I have not yet heard their names in those news stories.
I think it’s important to pause and recognize the people who do the hard work of keeping organizations running. Here at the AAD, there are full-time staffers and liaisons who have worked tirelessly (for years, but particularly during the past 12 months of crises) to keep the Academy running smoothly, and to keep members informed. I am not an AAD zealot, and have, prior to 2020, been primarily involved in small, siloed parts of the organization. I have served on the Residents and Fellows Committee, the Sulzberger Institute for Dermatology Education Committee, and on two Expert Resource Groups (Society of Dermatology Hospitalists, and Climate Change and Environmental Affairs). I had consistently been impressed by the responsiveness and professionalism, and institutional knowledge, of our AAD liaison (Allen McMillen) throughout my tenure. The COVID-19 pandemic, however, forced continuous, rapid responses and proactive decision-making about a rapidly changing emergency with peaks and valleys over months.
The AAD formed a COVID-19 Ad Hoc Task force, led by Drs. George Hruza and Bruce Thiers, including a diverse group of dermatologists from across the country, in private practice and academic medical centers. This task force initially met weekly (organized by Barbara Greenan), with the goal of providing accurate, up-to-date information on the pandemic and its myriad of consequences to Academy members. I hope that many of you have seen the informative emails, the incredible website, (supported by a team of AAD IT and Communications folks) and are aware of things such as the COVID-19 Dermatology Registry, which has helped our field raise and answer questions about the dermatologic impacts of SARS-CoV-2 infection. This has led to a number of high-impact publications, and appropriate recognition of folks like Dr. Esther Freeman, who has indefatigably led the registry efforts.
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What I doubt most of you see, however, are the hard-working AAD staffers and full-time Academy employees who do the work of making those things happen. Every link, email, PDF, or survey is drafted and built by a staffer. More than that, the AAD has folks who monitor, on a daily basis, everything that the Academy may need to know and respond to during this period. There is a staffer at the Hill (Shawn Friesen) who sends daily updates on budget negotiations and bailout packages, ensuring that the voice of medicine and, in particular, dermatology, is heard — and that the Academy as an organization is prepared to respond to new legislation, rules, and regulations. One challenge during the pandemic has been the failure of leadership at a federal level, leading to a patchwork of approaches at the state level — and creating markedly more work for the AAD to accurately track rules, advocate for dermatology, and keep members informed. The AAD staffers have worked tirelessly throughout this pandemic to ensure that dermatology is represented and that dermatologists are informed. With the rollout of the initial CARES Act and the more recent second stimulus package, AAD staffers provided real-time updates about the negotiations, the details of the package, and provisions important for dermatologists to digest and utilize. I have no doubt that many readers applied for Paycheck Protection Program loans and other financial supports during this trying period. The information about when, how, and whether to apply for different relief was drafted, vetted, and pushed out to members by staffers working around the clock to keep us informed.
I would like to thank those hard-working AAD staffers and liaisons who do the daily work of keeping our organization going (such as Richard Nelson, one of the editors of DermWorld). I have many young dermatologists, often right out of residency, ask why AAD membership is so expensive, or what the consequences are of not joining. The AAD is the voice of dermatology, our field’s representative in the house of medicine and to the country. The organization is strongest if it broadly represents all dermatologists. I do not personally agree with every position the Academy supports, and in particular I think the pandemic has highlighted the need for us to consistently support those in public office who support science, evidence, and truth. If you disagree with Academy positions, remain a member, be active, and help push the organization with your own voice (the application period for committees opens in April 2021!). Regardless, we should all be grateful for our hard-working staff. The challenges of 2020 have shown how important it is to recognize those who are sometimes forgotten or neglected. Thank you.
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