The ACC’s Board of Governors are the foot soldiers of the College. With a teamwork-focused BOG, previously insurmountable changes can be more easily attainable. A few years ago, the Door-to-Balloon (D2B) initiative gained traction once the BOG decided it was a top priority. We saw first-hand how as a team, the BOG can enact change to make the environment better for physicians, the care team and most importantly, patients. When the BOG get behind something, our collective voice is often heard and the initiative comes to fruition. Our ultimate goal is to be that voice for the members of the College.

Tackling changes across the board is a lofty goal with its share of challenges. During my tenure as Chair of the BOG, I’m proposing we model our strategic plan at the state level after the mission and pillars of the College – bringing local relevance to national priorities by involving the states in two-way communication and decision-making with national goals:

• Membership: Ensuring that all states have the opportunity for success is key. We must focus on member value and preserve the brand of the College.
• Education: Focusing on need-based programs and using traveling educational resources and web-based activities for continuity of state-wide initiatives.
• Advocacy: Teamwork shines here more than any other area of the College. We must partner and invest in ourselves and relationships with payers, lawmakers, strategic partners and each other to ensure the voice of the College is heard.
• Science and Quality: The BOG should participate in all ACC quality initiatives including guideline and appropriate use criteria development as well as our registries including the NCDR^®. The BOG can help develop new registries and embrace existing registry data to help affect quality patient care. This is clearly one place where the “doers” of the College can really take action.

Representing more than 50 Chapters consisting of incredible cardiovascular professionals is an exciting challenge – and a task that my predecessor, Thad Waites, MD, FACC, did with ease and professionalism. I look forward to the accomplishments we will see from the Chapters this year and the change in perception of the BOG to one that stands for strategic priority decision making across all four pillars of the College.

For more on Itchhaporia’s strategy for the BOG, look out for the May/June issue of Cardiology magazine.

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