Many of you know that over half of frontline healthcare workers selflessly serving in COVID-19 epicenters such as New Yorker City are foreign-born. Physicians of Pakistani descent have been treating patients in the ER, in the ICU, and in their offices. They are serving on hospital committees and local government boards setting health care policy and best medical practice guidelines. They are guiding their institutions and private practices through the economic trauma of staff layoffs and furloughs while integrating telemedicine. They are leading in acquisition of Personal Protective Equipment for their local communities and in Pakistan. They are donating to food banks locally and supporting families affected by COVID-19 abroad. As first- and second-generation physicians of Pakistani heritage and members of APPNA, we seek an organization that offers opportunities to broaden our professional experiences here and abroad. Fortunately, APPNA provides a platform to do so through its networking and philanthropic projects, by volunteering in the APPNA Medical Corps, and by participating in continuing medical education and training at health institutions in Pakistan. Increasing the participation of physicians who have completed medical school in North America is essential for the growth and sustainability of APPNA as an organization promoting business development, networking, philanthropy, and skills transfer. The 2019 APPNA National Spring Meeting in St. Louis was marked by the re-certification of the North American Medical Alumni (NAMA) Association, as a new CABL and officer roll was submitted to the APPNA central office and approved by the Council. The officers included APPNA members from East to West Coast, including the Heartland: Drs. Azhar Majeed (Internist in Pomona, CA), Samia Piracha (Radiologist in Fairfax, VA), Mujtaba Qazi (Ophthalmologist in St. Louis), Tayyib Rana (Ophthalmologist in DC), and Shamail Tariq (Interventional Cardiology in St. Louis). Due to the leadership of these and other NAMA members, the North American and Caribbean Medical alumni had their best attended Friday Alumni Dinner at the 2019 Annual Summer Meeting in Orlando. In addition to warm introductions, attendees split into groups to participate in a SWOT (Strength, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats) session that identified the opportunity to grow APPNA by connecting with the untapped pool of NAMA and Caribbean graduates, but expressed concern over the cohesiveness of the APPNA leadership. Dr. Fawad Zafar also provided an update of the APPNA Cornea Transplant donation project (https://appna.org/appna-corneal-transplant-project/) and Alex Kronemer, CEO of Unity Productions Foundation (https://www.upf.tv/), informed us of UPF’s upcoming animated film Lamya’s Poem. NAMA and Carribean alumni held a symposium on Saturday of the 2019 Summer Meeting titled APPNA for the 2nd Generation & Beyond: Welcome Address Nadeem Ahmed, MD APPNA Abroad: Mission Trips Moderator: Nadia Afridi, MD Panelist: Minal Ahson, MD, MSPH (APPNA Medical Corps) Professional Development Moderator: Azhar Majeed, MD, MBA Panelists: Mujtaba A. Qazi, MD (Partnering with Pharma) Afnan R. Tariq, MD, JD (Building a Career, Entrance and Exit Strategies) Pakistani-American Physician Leaders Moderator: Shamail S. Tariq, MD Panelists: Salman A. Malik, DMD, MD (Physician Leadership in Public Health Policy Asif Mahmood Chaudhry, MD (Political and Civic Activism) We look forward to continued participation of North American Medical Alumni and students in APPNA projects, mission trips, and meetings. We encourage APPNA members from all chapters and alumni to register their friends, colleagues, and children who are NAMA graduates with our Alumni at mqazi@peposevision.com or on the NAMA/Caribbean Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/groups/2132416253702504/ with the goal of cultivating lifelong leaders of NAMA and APPNA. Mujtaba A. Qazi, M.D.
