Susan Bailey, MD, was sworn in remotely June 7 as the 175th president of the American Medical Association. She is the third consecutive woman to assume the office.
The AMA said Dr. Bailey discussed her healthcare career as well as the association's strategic efforts during a virtual special meeting of the AMA House of Delegates.
"Our journey in medicine is simple: Let doctors be doctors," Dr. Bailey said in her inaugural address. "After more than 30 years in a small, private practice, I am a passionate defender of the independent physician, and, like the AMA, I'm determined to remove all those obstacles that have come between us and our patients. Insurers and government mandates … burnout and physician suicide. And the coronavirus pandemic has made all of these problems more acute.
"At times I fear that our nation’s dysfunctional health system is held together only by the oath that we take when we graduate medical school — the pledge to always put the needs and interests of our patients first. Whether you took the Hippocratic Oath or, as in my case, recited the Prayer of Maimonides, these words demonstrate our loyalty to public service, to the pursuit of science and knowledge. These words bring purpose and meaning to our work, elevating it from a vocation to a profession."
Dr. Bailey has served on the AMA Board of Trustees for nine years, previously holding leadership positions including chair of the AMA Council on Medical Education. She was also a member of the AMA's Advisory Panel to the Women in Medicine Project and the AMA's Ad Hoc Committee on Women Physicians.
An allergist from Texas, she has worked with Fort Worth Allergy and Asthma Associates for more than three decades and serves on the board of directors of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education.
Before becoming an AMA officer, Dr. Bailey was president of the Texas Medical Association and Tarrant County Medical Society.