Unity is our greatest responsibility.

By Terrence A. Cronin Jr., MD, FAAD, March 1, 2024

It has been my highest honor and privilege to serve as your president. I’ve made so many new friends along the way, and I have been truly impressed by our members’ dedication to and love of the Academy. We truly stand on the shoulders of giants, and I will cherish my small moment in our history.

First and foremost, I want to express my deepest gratitude to the officers, staff, and every member of the American Academy of Dermatology. Thank you especially to Robert Kirsner, MD, FAAD, Daniel Bennett, MD, FAAD, our CEO Elizabeth Usher, Mark Kaufmann, MD, FAAD, and Keyvan Nouri, MD, MBA, FAAD, on whose leadership and guidance I depended. Your dedication to the field of dermatology, your commitment to patient care, and your unwavering passion for advancing our specialty have not gone unnoticed. It is because of you that we stand strong in the face of adversity. I know that we can count on the leadership of our incredible incoming officers President Seemal Desai, MD, FAAD, and Vice-President Cyndi Yag-Howard, MD, FAAD, to keep us on the path of excellence.

I would be remiss if I didn’t thank my incredible wife Ava for her support during this exceptional year. No words can express my thanks enough.

During my year as President, I appreciated that one of the most powerful attributes of the American Academy of Dermatology is our ability to come together as a unified force. We are a diverse group, consisting of dermatologic surgeons, medical dermatologists, pediatric dermatologists, and dermatopathologists. We have members from academic institutions, private practices, and those employed by others. Yet, despite all our differences, we share a common goal: to provide excellent care for our patients.

As we bid farewell to my administration and look forward to the challenges that lie ahead, it is imperative that we, as members of the American Academy of Dermatology, come together in unity and solidarity to help continue to provide ever better care for our patients. The current state of our health care system demands nothing less.

The challenges are real. As we are beset with the ever-growing wealth of information and therapies that we must keep abreast of, we also need to care for ourselves and balance our lives with our careers, provide for our families, our staff members, and our patients Unfortunately, our health care system is buckling under the weight of inflation and physician payment has not only not kept up but continues to be cut. This not only creates an unfair playing field, but it also jeopardizes the well-being of the American people. We cannot thrive in this environment without a strategic and unified approach.

The threat we face today is not from within our own ranks, but rather a landscape that threatens to divide us. It is imperative that we rise above these divisions and recognize the strength we hold as a united front. Our influence, our power, and our ability to effect change are directly tied to the number of voices we can rally together.

I encourage you to remain focused on our mission. Our dedication to education, innovation, and advocacy should serve as a reminder that you are not alone in this fight.

This year, our dedicated AAD delegation at the AMA exhibited remarkable eloquence, influencing the entire organization to focus on the crucial advocacy mission of increasing Medicare physician payment and protecting patient access. We demonstrated that unity is our greatest strength, rallying together to bring attention to this pressing issue and discussing its potential impact on our patients. Through a virtual summit comprising physician leaders from various specialties — neurosurgery, internal medicine, family medicine, pathology, and more — we pooled our united concern to bring forth an unshakable message.

Our AADA Legislative Conference marked a resounding success, and an innovative partnership with industry for amplifying our voice before Congress. This collaborative effort demonstrated the strength we possess when we unite toward a common goal. Physicians are challenged to thrive in the current environment unless we devise inspired strategies to navigate the hostile landscape we face. We must be willing to organize as physicians and mold ourselves into an army with a unified voice.

I’m excited to tell you that the AADA has developed an Ad Hoc Task Force on Finding Common Sense Medicare Legislation to rally the house of medicine and build a single-issue coalition. This AHTF, chaired by Andrew H. Weinstein, MD, FAAD, has the goal of achieving an inflation-based adjustment to Medicare reimbursement. By focusing on this single, unifying issue, the AADA will bring the entire house of medicine under a single umbrella organization. This organization will borrow proven methods from other industries to effectively influence Congress to create Medicare-saving legislation.

I remain in awe of our meetings team and the incredible AAD meetings we convene every year. We are the educational lighthouse to the world, but we keep innovating, making our meetings better and something you don’t want to miss! San Diego is bound to be an unforgettable educational experience. I hope you will come to the Plenary for a unique opportunity to hear from our special guest William Shatner.

Another out-of-this-world program that the Academy should be very proud of is helping kids with dermatologic conditions enjoy some incredible experiences at Camp Discovery. My visit to our Minnesota program was personally inspiring and made me so proud of our organization and the good things we do.

I’m particularly proud that the AAD’s Ad Hoc Task Force on Dermatologic Resources for the Intervention and Prevention of Human Trafficking has developed multiple resources to educate physicians and empower our members to better advocate for these patients. Kudos to chair Shadi Kourosh, MD, FAAD, and the members of this task force for providing us with education and resources on the skin signs of human trafficking and making it easier for us to make a difference.

As we move into the new year, let unity be our guiding principle. Let us forge stronger bonds with our fellow members, support one another, and stand united in the face of adversity. Our patients rely on us, our specialty relies on us, and the future of dermatology relies on us.

Unity is not just a responsibility; it is our greatest strength. So, let us embrace our responsibility with open hearts and minds. Let us flex our muscles together, hand in hand, toward a brighter and more prosperous future for all. This is our greatest responsibility, and together, we shall prevail.

Presidential spotlight

It takes a dedicated and engaged membership to move the needle on the issues facing our patients and practices, and sometimes our most diligent members can go unrecognized. As a toast to our unsung heroes within the Academy, I will be featuring one hardworking member at the end of this column each month.

This month’s recipient of the Presidential Spotlight goes to: Terrence A. Cronin Sr., MD, FAAD

He served his country in Vietnam as an Air Force physician in 1967. After his return home, he completed his dermatology residency at the University of Southern California/Los Angeles County Hospital where he served as chief resident. He was invited to join a practice in Melbourne, Florida, with George Stroud, MD, FAAD. He brought his California surgical experience to Florida and devoted much of his time advocating for dermatologists to have the right to perform skin cancer surgery. He was an early trailblazer of dermatologic surgery teaching at the AAD annual meetings and at the newly formed ASDS. He also generously mentored many of our appreciative colleagues at the University of Miami and in his office.

Along with other like-minded dermatologic surgeons, he founded the Florida Society of Dermatologic Surgeons. His innovative wound closure designs have been published widely and recently in the Atlas of Reconstructive Surgery after Skin Cancer Surgery that he co-edited with his proud son and granddaughter. He and his wonderful wife, Kathy, have been active supporters of “Christ is the Answer” local homeless mission and Dr. Cronin has volunteered his dermatologic expertise in Milot, Haiti, at the Sacré Coeur Hospital.

His tireless commitment to innovative surgical education, mentorship, and charitable service deserves our admiration and his dedicated support of my presidential administration (which I couldn’t have done without his wise counsel and motivation!) certainly deserves the Presidential Spotlight.

Additional DermWorld Resources