Dave Fellers, CAE, assumed the position of Executive Director of The American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS) in July, 1999. The Executive Director is the highest staff position in the organization and Mr. Fellers will oversee all organization business and finance operations, including the Annual Meeting; publications; professional development; information services; communications; marketing and sales; membership; and the Research Foundation. Prior to joining the AANS, Mr. Fellers served as Executive Director of the American Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons (ASPRS) and the Plastic Surgery Educational Foundation.
“Dave Fellers comes to us with outstanding credentials in the field of association management and medical society administration,” said Russell L. Travis, MD, AANS Immediate Past-President and Chair of the Search Committee. “His considerable skills in strategic planning and marketing, as well as his knowledge of the socioeconomic issues impacting specialty medicine, will be significant assets to the Association.”
During Mr. Fellers tenure, ASPRS was recognized for several award winning programs, including: ASAE Association’s Advance America Summit Award for its breast reconstruction education efforts; a Certificate of Achievement from the American Association for Medical Society Executives (AAMSE) for its Breast Cancer Awareness Month Program; and the Association Forum of Chicagoland for its collaborative efforts with the Food and Drug Administration on breast implant research.
Before leading ASPRS, Mr. Fellers was Director of the Division of Marketing and Public Affairs for the American Nurses Association, and he served as Executive Vice President of both the Texas and Oklahoma Oil Marketers Associations. Mr. Fellers also is a Fellow of the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE) and Past-President of the Oklahoma and Texas Societies of Association Executives. He currently is a member of both the ASAE and AAMSE Board of Directors.
Following are some brief observations by Mr. Fellers as he embarks on his career at the AANS. If you have any questions or concerns for Mr. Fellers, he can be reached at [email protected].
What are your top three priorities for your first year at the AANS?
It is my nature to “hit the ground running” and I have several goals for my first year at the AANS. Some of the areas I will focus on include: 1) enhancing the benefits that neurosurgeons receive from the AANS, with emphasis on expanding the public knowledge of who neurosurgeons are and the conditions they treat; 2) continuing to develop a well-rounded and highly-responsive staff and National Office; and 3) updating the AANS strategic plan to enhance the productivity of staff, guide the development and implementation of activities, and assure coordination and cooperation among neurosurgical organizations.
How do you envision the AANS in five years?
Active and focused. The AANS will continue to be the premiere organization for neurosurgeons with expanded communications initiatives focused on educating the public and medical gatekeepers on the scope of neurosurgical practice; outstanding scientific and socioeconomic publications; and an excellent array of educational programs for members.
How do you think a national organization like the AANS can impact the everyday practice of members?
The AANS is constantly at work behind the scenes, and just about everything we do should impact the everyday practice of our members. The AANS must shift with the changing healthcare marketplace to assure that members receive the most effective educational and practice enhancement opportunities. By providing the most current information and technology on scientific advances and practice management, combined with a national outreach to consumers, the primary care medical community and policy makers, we can position member practices on the cutting edge.
Why do you feel it is important that a small specialty like neurosurgery have a strong national organization?
Because neurosurgery is a small specialty, it would be difficult to influence socioeconomic areas of organized medicine without the AANS pulling the specialty together to present a united front. It is through the efforts of AANS and its Washington Office that reimbursement is appropriately represented and that a national presence of neurosurgery is presented to the legislative branches of government. An active, dynamic national organization is essential if a specialty is going to thrive in the 21st century.
Neurosurgery is somewhat unique in the fact that there are several strong, national organizations. What is your strategy for addressing this issue?
Neurosurgery is fortunate to have a number of outstanding organizations representing its interests. I look forward to working closely with each of these groups to seek ways to collaborate, avoid duplication and, most importantly, to enhance our members’ practices and their ability to meet the needs of their patients.
Ultimately, I feel that neurosurgeons will best be served by pooling many of the resources, talents and strategies of the various organizations in a collective effort. There may be many opportunities for consolidation and cooperation, and I will strive to identify these while, at the same time, being sensitive to the valuable contribution each group makes to neurosurgery.
The ASPRS has been quite proactive in developing a relationship with third-party payers. Tell us about your accomplishments in this area and how you feel it has benefited members.
One of the goals in my position with plastic surgeons has been to clearly establish the scope of practice and the necessity of reimbursement for certain procedures. Through direct discussions, exhibits, and the development of guidelines, we learned a great deal from our interactions with third-party payers. While proving the necessity of procedures isn’t as large of an issue for neurosurgery, it is essential that we maintain a firm holding for neurosurgeons as the premier physicians for spine, cerebrovascular, skull base and pain procedures, among other areas. A top priority is to communicate the diversity of neurosurgical procedures and assure that third-party payers recognize the value of neurosurgical care and reimburse appropriately.
Over the past few years, you have had to tackle the issue of subspecialization within plastic surgery. How will this experience help you as neurosurgery continues to struggle with this issue?
“Turf” issues are more prominent in plastic surgery than any other specialty. It is critical that every specialty respect and address the issues and concerns of its subspecialty areas. I have learned that open communication channels, cooperation and collaboration, rather than duplication, are fundamental to finding a win-win solution the entire specialty can benefit from.
As the breast implant debates began to surface, what advice did you give to the ASPRS Board of Directors?
My experience with the FDA began three days after I started with ASPRS. Our initial response was to raise $3 million to “fight” the issue in Congress and the FDA. While this was totally supported by membership, we soon learned the key to the issue was appropriate and necessary research to respond to the concerns and questions of the public. My advice to organized plastic surgery was to balance their legislative initiatives with scientific research, or data, that would inform the public and governmental agencies of the value of the procedure, or the device.
Do you have a “golden rule” that you try and instill throughout an organization?
It is the same for leadership and staff…our goal is to identify and respond to members needs. This is best accomplished through research on members’ needs and effective strategic planning. It is critical that the AANS know the opinions and attitudes of the membership. Members will be receiving many requests for their opinions on projects, services and direction for the AANS. This input will be very valuable and will be closely evaluated.
What are your hobbies?
I like to work hard and play hard. My wife, Jan, and I enjoy adventure vacations or cruises-such as trekking in Nepal last November; camping and hiking along the Amazon; or biking in Turkey and Greece. We also enjoy biking, golf and tennis. Jan and our eldest daughter, Stacia, have an antique business in Kansas City; and our youngest daughter, Andrea, is a starving actress in Hollywood.