Jesse M. Ehrenfeld, MD, wins office of AMA president-elect – American Medical Association

June 14, 2022 News Editor

Jesse M. Ehrenfeld, MD, MPH, an anesthesiologist in Wisconsin, was voted president-elect of the American Medical Association by the physicians and medical students gathered at the 2022 AMA Annual Meeting of the House of Delegates.

“I am honored to be elected by my peers to represent the nation’s physicians and the patients we serve,” said Dr. Ehrenfeld. “It is a pivotal and challenging time for medicine, physicians and our health system, and as president-elect, I am committed to advancing the AMA’s immediate goals around the Recovery Plan for America’s Physicians, as well as the longer-term advocacy efforts aimed at shaping the future of medicine and improving the health of the nation.”

Following a year-long term as president-elect, Dr. Ehrenfeld will be installed as AMA president in June 2023. Dr. Ehrenfeld will be the first openly gay person to hold the office of president-elect, and also will be the first as AMA president.

Active in organized medicine since medical school, Dr. Ehrenfeld was elected to the AMA Board of Trustees in 2014, serving as chair from 2019 to 2020. Dr. Ehrenfeld has also served as a member of the governing councils of both the AMA Young Physicians Section and the AMA Resident and Fellow Section, as well as the governing boards of the American Society of Anesthesiologists Resident Component and the Illinois State Medical Society. Additionally, Dr. Ehrenfeld is a former speaker for the Massachusetts Medical Society and the youngest officer in the organization’s 228-year history.

Dr. Ehrenfeld is a practicing anesthesiologist, senior associate dean, and tenured professor of anesthesiology at the Medical College of Wisconsin, where he leads the largest statewide health philanthropy, the Advancing a Healthier Wisconsin Endowment. He is also an adjunct professor of anesthesiology and health policy at Vanderbilt University and adjunct professor of surgery at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, Maryland.

A co-author of 18 clinical textbooks, Dr. Ehrenfeld is the editor-in-chief of the Journal of Medical Systems. His research—focused on how digital technology can improve surgical safety, patient outcomes, and health equity—has been funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Department of Defense, the Anesthesia Patient Safety Foundation, the Foundation for Anesthesia Education and Research, and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Dr. Ehrenfeld’s work in this arena has led to the publication of more than 200 peer-reviewed manuscripts, and recognition as an inaugural recipient of the NIH’s Sexual & Gender Minority Research Investigator Award.

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New trustees elected

The newest members of the AMA Board of Trustees include a radiologist from Kentucky and a hematologist from Pennsylvania. They will serve four-year terms on the board.

Alexander Ding, MD, a radiologist from Kentucky, has been active in organized medicine since his time as a medical student at the University of California, San Francisco. He is a clinical assistant professor at the University of Louisville and is physician executive-in-residence in the Office of the Chief Medical Officer at Humana. In this role, he works to empower and enable practices in value-based care, manages physician career development, directs efforts on physician satisfaction and organizational focus on delivering on health outcomes, and strategizes on reducing friction points and administrative burdens to practices.

“It is an honor and privilege to be elected by my peers to the AMA Board of Trustees at this critical moment for medicine,” said Dr. Ding. “AMA advocacy has provided vital lifelines throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, cutting through misinformation, validating the vaccine approval process, and offering timely support and guidance to physician practices in their time of need.”

Marilyn Heine, MD, a practicing emergency medicine physician with a specialty in hematology and oncology from Pennsylvania, was also elected to the Board of Trustees. Dr. Heine has more than 40 years of experience, having worked in private practice, community-based, hospital, and academic settings. She is a clinical assistant professor of medicine at Drexel University College of Medicine in Philadelphia. An AMA member since 1981, Dr. Heine is the immediate past chair of the AMA Council on Legislation and liaison to the AMA Scope of Practice Partnership.

“I am honored to be elected by my colleagues to represent their voices on the AMA Board of Trustees,” said Dr. Heine. “During this impactful time, the AMA’s role to shape the future of medicine is evermore essential. In this role, I am committed to advocating for physicians and our patients as we work together to remove obstacles that interfere with care—and improve the health of the nation.”

In addition, Toluwalasé “Lasé” Ajayi, MD, was elected as Young Physician Trustee.

Two board members reelected

In other 2022 AMA election action, two Board of Trustees were re-elected to their posts.

Arkansas radiologist Scott Ferguson, MD, was elected to another four-year term on the Board of Trustees. Prior to his first election to board in 2018, Dr. Ferguson served as president of the Arkansas Medical Society and the Crittenden County Medical Association, and as state delegate to the AMA from Arkansas. A practicing radiologist in West Memphis, Arkansas, Dr. Ferguson is a fellow of the American College of Radiology.

“It is an honor and privilege to be reelected to the AMA Board of Trustees by my peers in medicine,” said Dr. Ferguson. “I have spent my career fighting to preserve physician choice, autonomy, patient protections, and the patient-physician relationship. As trustees, we are advocates for the AMA House of Delegates, our medical profession, and especially for our patients. I look forward to continuing to learn, listen, and lead at this critical time for medicine and our health system.”

Sandra A. Fryhofer, MD, a board-certified internist from Atlanta, was first elected to the Board of Trustees in 2018, and has been an active AMA member since 1983. She has served as chair of the AMA Council on Science and Public Health and a liaison to the Centers for Disease Control Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices. She has been a delegate for the American College of Physicians to the AMA House of Delegates since 2000.

“I’m honored to again be entrusted by my peers with a position on the AMA Board of Trustees,” said Dr. Fryhofer. “Physicians have faced immense challenges throughout the COVID-19 pandemic while caring for patients, and through it all, the AMA has been the physician’s powerful ally in patient care.”