Neurology on the Leading Edge
As the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) continues to severely impact the world, the AAN continues to uphold its commitment to provide guidance on the care of neurological patients affected by COVID-19. The AAN is collaborating with neurologists and medical educators around the world to share learnings gained from their experiences on the front lines and how COVID-19 is affecting the field of neurology overall.
On September 22, 2020, the AAN hosted its second event in the Neurology on the Leading Edge webinar series called "Post Pandemic Neurology: Solutions for Lasting Change in Health Care" and a recording is now available on the AAN's YouTube channel.
WEBINAR OVERVIEW
Vivian S. Lee, MD, PhD, MBA, President of Health Platforms at Verily and author of The Long Fix: Solving America’s Health Care Crisis with Strategies that Work for Everyone, will discuss the future of health care in America and why our system is failing the “COVID stress test.” Highlights of the discussion include:
- Proposing changes to the health care crisis that will result in enduring change that can dramatically alter the landscape
- The role of burnout and declining reimbursement rates
- Accelerating long-term solutions during the global COVID-19 pandemic
A. Gordon Smith, MD, FAAN, chair of the AAN Education Committee, and Orly Avitzur, MD, MBA, FAAN, AAN president elect, will guide the discussion with Lee and moderate a live Q&A with the audience. This offering is for medical students, residents, practitioners, researchers, and academicians. Join us for this discussion offered via a Zoom Webinar format.
BIOGRAPHIES
The author of The Long Fix: Solving America’s Health Care Crisis with Strategies that Work for Everyone (Norton), Lee is president of Health Platforms at Verily Life Sciences, an Alphabet company whose mission is to apply digital solutions that enable people to enjoy healthier lives. Lee was named by Modern Healthcare as one of the 50 Most Influential Clinical Executives in 2020. A physician and health care executive, Lee also serves as a senior lecturer at Harvard Medical School. Prior to joining Verily, Lee served as the dean of the Medical School and CEO of the University of Utah Health Care, an integrated health system with a budget of $3.6 billion, including a 1,400-member physician group and health insurance plan. During her tenure, she led the University of Utah Health to recognition for its health care delivery system innovations that enable higher quality at lower costs and with higher patient satisfaction, and superior financial performance. In 2016, the University of Utah was ranked first among all university hospitals in quality and safety (Vizient). Lee previously was the inaugural chief scientific officer of New York University’s Langone Medical Center. Elected to the National Academy of Medicine with over 200 peer-reviewed publications, Lee serves on the Defense Health Board of the Department of Defense, the Board of Directors of the Commonwealth Fund, and is also a director on the board of Zions Bancorporation, a publicly traded company. Lee is a magna cum laude graduate of Harvard, received a DPhil in medical engineering from Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar, earned her MD with honors from Harvard Medical School, and her MBA from NYU.
A. Gordon Smith, MD, FAAN
A. Gordon Smith, MD, FAAN, is the Kenneth and Diane Wright Distinguished Professor and Chair of the Department of Neurology at Virginia Commonwealth University. Smith leads an NIH-funded research team focusing on peripheral neuropathy in the setting of diabetes, obesity, and chemotherapy exposure. He has a particular interest in biomarker development and clinical trial design and is currently principal investigator for two NIH-funded multicenter clinical trials for peripheral neuropathy associated with diabetes and metabolic syndrome. He is chair of the AAN Education Committee and serves on the AAN Institute Board of Directors, as well as numerous other AAN committees, subcommittees, and work groups. He is a member of the Board of Directors for the Foundation for Peripheral Neuropathy and is a former member of the Board of Trustees for the American Brain Foundation and Board of Directors of the Peripheral Nerve Society.
Orly Avitzur, MD, MBA, FAAN
Orly Avitzur, MD, MBA, FAAN, is the president elect of the American Academy of Neurology. She is a medical writer and the editor-in-chief of Brain & Life®, the AAN patient magazine. She has been writing for Neurology Today®, reporting on trends and innovations in the practice of neurology, since 2001, and is an associate editor for the publication. She is a former chair of the AAN Medical Economics and Management Committee, the Practice Management and Technology Subcommittee, and the Audit Committee. For 10 years, she served as a health editor for Consumer Reports, and as its medical director from 2015–2018. She is the recipient of several APEX writing awards and the 2009 AAN Journalism Fellowship award. A graduate of the Pennsylvania State University School of Medicine, she is a clinical instructor at Yale University School of Medicine in New Haven, CT, where she completed her neurology residency, and a clinical assistant professor at New York Medical College in Valhalla, NY. She is a practicing neurologist in Tarrytown, NY, and a medical consultant to the New York Rangers.