As 2008 begins, the ASN welcomes Tod Ibrahim as the new Executive Director of the Society. Prior to assuming this position, Tod was the founding Executive Vice President of the Alliance for Academic Internal Medicine (AAIM), which is the largest academic specialty organization in the United States and Canada.
AAIM consists of the Association of Professors of Medicine (APM), the Association of Program Directors in Internal Medicine (APDIM), the Association of Specialty Professors (ASP), the Clerkship Directors in Internal Medicine (CDIM), and the Administrators of Internal Medicine (AIM). Through its constituent organizations, AAIM represents department chairs, division chiefs, fellowship training program directors, residency program directors, clerkship directors, chief administrative officers, and other faculty and staff leaders in departments of internal medicine at 143 medical schools and 263 teaching hospitals.
During Tod's tenure at AAIM, the number of meeting participants rose 23 percent, membership grew 38 percent, and the combined revenues of the associations increased 91 percent. The associations also established a joint annual meeting (Academic Internal Medicine Week) and an executive leadership program.
Another of Tod's priorities was to develop a unified policy operation for the associations. As a result, AAIM now addresses a broad range of issues related to medical education, research, and patient care. This policy portfolio includes funding for medical education and research; topics related to the future of research (such as stem cell research) and education (such as faculty development); reimbursement for physicians; the quality of health care (including pay-for-performance); the certification and recertification of internists; the accreditation process for internal medicine residency and fellowship programs; physician workforce; immigration; and access to health care.
Although focused on building AAIM, Tod also helped each association in the alliance meet specific goals. For example, APM launched initiatives to promote physician-scientists and increase the diversity of faculty and staff. APDIM helped facilitate the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education's Educational Innovations Project, which created more flexibility for selected internal medicine residency programs. ASP worked with the Association of American Medical Colleges to establish the National Resident Matching Program's Specialties Matching Service. CDIM partnered with the American College of Physicians to publish a textbook for medical students (Internal Medicine Essentials for Clerkship Students). AIM published An Administrator's Guide to Departments of Internal Medicine.
With funding from the John A. Hartford Foundation and Atlantic Philanthropies, ASP also established the T. Franklin Williams Scholars Program. Through this program, ASP and 12 internal medicine specialty societies—including ASN—provide two years of funding to young investigators interested in geriatric aspects of their specialties. By 2010, the T. Franklin Williams Scholars Program is expected to produce nearly 100 gero-subspecialists who will help internal medicine respond to the "demographic imperative” of an aging population.
Unusual among association executives, Tod regularly publishes articles in peer-reviewed journals. Next month, for example, he will publish "Tenures for Department Chairs: How Short Is Too Short?" in The American Journal of Medicine. During the past decade, he has published articles about the need to invigorate the discipline of internal medicine, the effect of globalism on academic internal medicine, the impact of centers and institutes on medical schools, the reasons for Medicare program funding of graduate medical education, and the importance of the Department of Veterans' Affairs medical care and health research programs.
Before becoming AAIM Executive Vice President, Tod was Executive Director of APM and a management consultant to ASP, CDIM, and AIM. He joined APM as Director of Public Policy after serving as Director of Communications for Robert Betz Associates (RBA), a federal health policy firm. Prior to RBA, he worked for US Representative Thomas C. Sawyer (D-OH). A two-time recipient of George Washington University's Jenny McKean Moore scholarship for poets, Tod has a master's degree in liberal arts from Johns Hopkins University and a bachelor's degree in English from the University of Maryland at College Park.
Sincerely,
Peter S. Aronson, MD, FASN
President, American Society of Nephrology
2. Renew Your Membership Online
The time has come to renew your membership in the American Society of Nephrology (ASN) for the 2008 calendar year. Thanks to you and thousands of your colleagues, ASN membership grew to a record-breaking 10,500 in 2007.
ASN now offers members the ease of online renewals and the ability to update demographic information online. To renew your ASN membership online today, simply follow the instructions included below:
- Go to www.asn-online.org.
- Click on "Renew your ASN membership for 2008" under "Renal Reminders."
- Insert your last name and user ID.
- Click on "Renew membership with ASN."
- Select "renew" and continue following the prompts to renew your dues.
- After reviewing, don’t forget to update your demographic information.
Your membership includes a subscription to the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology (JASN), the Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology (CJASN), and the Nephrology Self-Assessment Program (NephSAP), as well as the ability to submit and/or sponsor abstracts for Renal Week, receive ASN’s e-newsletters (Renal Express and Renal Policy Express) automatically, access to online job advertisements, and access to an online Membership Directory (which is updated daily). ASN members are also entitled to discounted registration fees for Renal Week, Renal WeekEnds, and the ASN Annual Board Review Course & Update. All you need to take advantage of ASN membership benefits is your last name and your ASN User ID.
This year, ASN and the American College of Physicians (ACP) have again signed an agreement to provide a 10% dues discount (for those paying full membership fees) for individuals who are members of both ASN and ACP. It is important to note that if you are paying a discounted ACP membership rate, you are ineligible for this reduced rate. Additionally, if you renew or join the ASN and then apply for membership with the ACP, you will not be eligible for a refund of the difference in membership rates. If you renewed your membership in 2007 as an ASN-ACP member, this option will be automatically offered to you again in 2008. If you have recently become a member of ACP, please email ASN’s Senior Membership Coordinator Pamela Beard at pbeard@asn-online.org for assistance with your 2008 membership renewal.
To renew your membership and update your contact information online today, simply follow steps 1 through 6 included above. Please stay tuned to the ASN website for a new look, additional enhancements, and more services to ASN members.
3. Attend Renal WeekEnds
Did you know that there are so many simultaneous presentations during Renal Week that even if you attended back-to-back sessions you could only partake in about 20% of the entire program? That’s why ASN is offering all Renal Week 2007 participants a special reduced-rate to attend the society’s upcoming Renal WeekEnds, which will take place in February and March of 2008.
During Renal WeekEnds, expert faculty will summarize, critique, and put into perspective key presentations from the 2007 Renal Week in San Francisco, CA. These "Renal Week Highlights" programs are perfect for those who could not attend Renal Week and for those November participants who were unable to attend these key presentations.
Join us in the city nearest you…
New York City (Feb 2-3), Washington DC (Feb 9-10), Los Angeles (Feb 16-17), Mexico City (Feb 23-24), Vancouver (Mar 1-2), Chicago (Mar 8-9), and Orlando (Mar 29-30).
New this year, all nephrology fellows are eligible to attend the Renal WeekEnd of their choice for only $35!
To learn more about these programs and register online, please click here.
4. ASN Awards Deadline
The deadline for all ASN awards nominations is Thursday, January 31, 2008. Nomination letters should be faxed to (202) 659-0709 or emailed to mkerlin@asn-online.org. Please click on each award below to obtain additional information about the award.
Please note:
- To nominate a candidate, please submit a letter of nomination and the nominee's curriculum vitae (CV).
- Two brief supporting letters may be submitted (for a total of no more than three letters), but supporting letters are not necessary.
- During his or her lifetime, an individual can receive only one of the following awards: Narins, Peters, Scribner, or Smith.
Descriptions about each ASN award are as follows:
The Robert G. Narins Award honors individuals who have made substantial and meritorious contributions in education and teaching. This award is named for Robert G. Narins, who is also the first recipient of the award.
The John P. Peters Award recognizes individuals who have made substantial research contributions to the discipline of nephrology and have sustained achievements in one or more domains of academic medicine, including clinical care, education, and leadership.
The Belding H. Scribner Award is presented annually to one or more individuals who have made outstanding contributions that have a direct impact on the care of patients with renal disorders or have substantially changed the clinical practice of nephrology.
The Homer W. Smith Award is presented annually to an individual who has made outstanding contributions that fundamentally affect the science of nephrology, broadly defined, but not limited to, the pathobiology, cellular, and molecular mechanisms, and genetic influences on the functions and diseases of the kidney.
The Young Investigator Award is presented annually to an individual with an outstanding record of achievement and creativity in basic or patient-oriented research related to the functions and diseases of the kidney. This award is co-sponsored by the Council on the Kidney of the American Heart Association and is limited to individuals who are less than 41 years of age on the first day of the ASN meeting at which the award is presented or who are less than 8 years from the start of their first faculty or staff research scientist position beyond post doctoral training.
Please click here for additional information about these ASN awards.
5. ASN Grants Deadlines
The deadline to apply for the following ASN grants is February 1, 2008:
- Alaska Kidney Foundation-ASN Research Grant.
- ASN-Association of Specialty Professors Junior Development Grant in Geriatric Nephrology.
- ASN-American Society of Transplantation John Merrill Grant in Transplantation.
- Carl W. Gottschalk Research Scholar Grant.
- ASN-Halpin Foundation Research Grant.
- Norman Siegel Research Scholar Grant.
The deadline to apply for the Student Scholar Grant is February 9, 2008.
For grant details and applications, please click here.
6. Access ASN Publications Free Online
As a membership benefit, ASN members receive free access to ASN’s publications and archives via the internet.
The only exception to this benefit is when members select the “Emeritus (Retired) Excludes Subscriptions to ASN Publications” membership type on their membership forms and their dues are waived. Members under this classification will not receive online access or print subscriptions to ASN’s journals.*
To access the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology (JASN), the Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology (CJASN), and the Nephrology Self-Assessment Program (NephSAP), please follow the steps below. These instructions are for only those members who have previously activated their online subscriptions and accessed the publications.
- Go to www.asn-online.org.
- Type your last name and user ID (membership number) in the upper-right hand corner of the screen and select "Go." If you do not know your user ID, you may select “Go” without entering the information and follow the prompts, or contact Pamela Beard at (202) 416-0657or pbeard@asn-online.org for assistance.
- Select “ASN Publications” from the menu bar on the left side of the page.
- Select the publication you wish to read online.
If you haven’t yet activated your online subscription or have trouble with online access, please contact Bob Henkel at (504) 942-0902 or bhenkel@asn-online.org for assistance.
* If you did chose the "emeritus (retired) membership without ASN publications" membership type when becoming a member or renewing your membership, and if wish to receive the ASN publications, please contact Ms. Beard at (202) 416-0657 or pbeard@asn-online.org to upgrade your membership type. For just $100 a year, you will receive ASN’s publications in print and have access to the publications online. In addition, if you have been a member for 20 or more years, you qualify for free membership and free print and online subscriptions to ASN’s publications.
7. Become a Fellow of the American Society of Nephrology (FASN)
Another relatively new benefit of ASN membership is the ability to earn the designation of Fellow of the American Society of Nephrology (FASN). This special distinction honors members of the Society who have distinguished themselves through excellence in practice or research. FASN status represents recognition by the Society and your peers of outstanding credentials, high professional achievement, commitment to the field, and demonstrated scholarship. For additional information about FASN, please click here.
