The Massachusetts Medical Society has announced the appointment of Dr. Richard V. Aghababian, the Founding Chair of the Department of Emergency Medicine at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, as the President of the Society. The announcement was made at the organisation's annual meeting on May 17 at the Seaport Hotel in Boston.
Dr. Aghababian succeeds Worcester pediatrician Dr. Lynda Young as the top officer of the Society, the statewide membership organisation representing nearly 24,000 physicians and medical students in the Commonwealth.
Dr. Aghababian has a long record of distinguished service with the state medical society. He served as President-Elect and Vice President, respectively, for the last two years, and was Secretary-Treasurer for two years prior to that. He has also been a member of its District Leadership Council and House of Delegates and was a member of the committees on Finance, Nominations, Physician Preparedness, Global Medicine, and Medical Education.
Dr. Aghababian has also held a number of key leadership posts in local and national groups. He has served as president of the Worcester District Medical Society, the Massachusetts College of Emergency Physicians, American College of Emergency Physicians, and the Society for Airway Management. He is the secretary-treasurer of the Society for Chest Pain Centers, a national group that helps hospitals improve management of cardiac patients in an observation setting.
An editor-in-chief, associate editor, and contributing author for several textbooks and a widely-published author and lecturer on topics in emergency medicine, disaster response, and preparedness, Dr. Aghababian has received honors and awards for his contributions to medicine and the community from the American Red Cross, the Worcester District Medical Society, Massachusetts College of Emergency Physicians, and the University of Massachusetts. In 2007, he was a recipient of the Annual Health Care Heroes Award from the Worcester Business Journal.
The Massachusetts Medical Society, with nearly 24,000 physicians and student members, is dedicated to educating and advocating for the patients and physicians of Massachusetts. The Society publishes the New England Journal of Medicine, a global medical journal and web site, and Journal Watch alerts and newsletters covering 13 specialties.
