title: The 2016 AANS Presidential Address: Leading the way.
abstract: This AANS presidential address focuses on enduring values of the neurosurgical profession that transcend the current political climate. The address was delivered by Dr. Batjer during a US presidential election year, but the authors have intentionally avoided discussing the current chaos of the American health care system in the knowledge that many pressing issues will change depending on the outcome of the 2016 elections. Instead, they have chosen to focus on clarifying what neurosurgeons, and the American Association of Neurological Surgeons, in particular, stand for; identifying important challenges to these fundamental principles and values; and proposing specific actions to address these challenges. The authors cite "de-professionalism" and commoditization of medicine as foremost among the threats that confront medicine and surgery today and suggest concrete action that can be taken to reverse these trends as well as steps that can be taken to address other significant challenges. They emphasize the importance of embracing exceptionalism and never compromising the standards that have characterized the profession of neurosurgery since its inception.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurological Surgery, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, Texas.
authors.forename: H Hunt
authors.initials: HH
authors.lastname: Batjer
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurological Surgery, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, Texas.
authors.forename: Vin Shen
authors.initials: VS
authors.lastname: Ban
mesh_terms: D007857:Leadership; D009493:Neurosurgery; D012955:Societies, Medical; D014481:United States
keywords: AANS; AANS = American Association of Neurological Surgeons; ABMS = American Board of Medical Specialties; ABNS = American Board of Neurological Surgery; ACGME = Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education; CTE = chronic traumatic encephalopathy; GME = graduate medical education; IOM = Institute of Medicine; MOC = maintenance of certification; NFL = National Football League; PTSD = post-traumatic stress disorder; RRC = Residency Review Committee; VA = US Department of Veterans Affairs; WFNS = World Federation of Neurosurgical Societies; WHO = World Health Organization; leadership; neurosurgery; presidential address