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Endocrine Society moving toward increased global view, activism, president says
CHICAGO — With a change of physical location, the Endocrine Society has entered a time of change, global awareness and increased activism, the president of the society said during the presidential plenary.
“Impact and influence means being prepared with activist members and authoritative resources and a society ready to be at the spear’s tip of the difficult but imperative issues of our day,” Theresa K. Woodruff, MD, president of the Endocrine Society said at the joint meeting of the International Congress of Endocrinology and the Endocrine Society.
“Importantly, our Endocrine Society was well-positioned as advocates with access to key thought leaders to make the case for stable funding models, maintaining the pipeline of trainees, for reasonable physician reimbursement plans as well as practical physician learning modules. In the end, we have maintained our homeostatic subpoint and are prepared for the changes we will face as we move expectedly into the society’s next century,” she said at the meeting.
Woodruff explained that the past year had brought many fluctuations to the Endocrine Society, such as a physical move of the office to downtown Washington, D.C, poised for increased advocacy, and the installment of a new chief executive officer, as well as changes in the global society including the US government shut-down, the passage of the Affordable Care Act and changes to the Maintenance of Certification.
She charged two task forces with undertaking research and activism regarding endocrine-disrupting chemicals, both in the European Union and globally, she said. In the US, she added, Endocrine Society members have worked toward protecting funding, sex inclusion in biomedical sciences, coding and physician reimbursement and increasing awareness on obesity and diabetes.
“In the last year, our society has ramped up its efforts with more days on Capitol Hill, targeted basic science and clinical grass-roots campaigns, and media outreach,” Woodruff said.
Lastly, Woodruff addressed the crowded room, reminding them that there will be more than 3,200 abstracts and plenaries presented at this meeting because “Curiosity creates cures.”
“You represent the largest and most diverse gathering of endocrinologists ever assembled,” she said. “Our shared goal is to ensure that existing and emerging leaders — irrespective of geography — present the most relevant and urgent endocrine topics of our day at this meeting. The endocrine health of the globe rests on our ability to learn from each other in order to increase the pace and quality of research and medical advances.”
For More Information: Woodruff TK. Plenary. Presented at: The joint meeting of the International Congress of Endocrinology and the Endocrine Society; June 21-24, 2014; Chicago.
Disclosures: Woodruff reports no relevant financial relationships.