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Bruce Scott, MD, an otolaryngologist from Louisville, Kentucky, was sworn in Tuesday evening as the American Medical Association's (AMA) 179th president; he promised to "fight for our profession [and] fight for our patients."

"I still believe the AMA can and does make a difference for our patients and our profession," Scott said in his inaugural speech, during the AMA's annual meeting of its House of Delegates in Chicago. "We are committed to protecting the patient-physician relationship. Standing up for science and the ethical practice of medicine. Pushing back against reckless scope expansions. Fighting for fair payment that supports thriving practices. Pressing for relief from administrative burdens -- so that physicians can focus our attention on what matters most -- our patients."

"Our healthcare system should help physicians provide good care, not get in the way," said Scott. "Physicians are struggling with two decades of spiraling Medicare payment cuts and an ever-increasing administrative burden. These concerns are no longer theoretical."

He noted that almost two-thirds of physicians show signs of burnout, while a third plan to reduce their hours and one in five are hoping to either stop practicing or retire in the next 2 years. "Physicians are literally closing their doors. We cannot afford to lose even one more doctor! It's time for us to fight."

Scott also discussed his childhood, telling the audience that he "was not the most athletically inclined kid growing up. When teams were chosen, I was often the last one remaining. I would often hear, 'You can have Bruce.' But I found a different way to excel -- rhetoric and debate."

And although his older brother John recently reminded Scott that his attempts at rhetoric with the neighborhood bullies often resulted in John getting into fights to protect his little brother, "that gift of gab earned me a debate scholarship to Vanderbilt University, where I honed my powers of persuasion," Scott said.

Scott explained that his interest in medicine began when he was about 12 and working with his brother in the garage on their model airplanes. "We needed something from up high in the rafters, so I climbed a ladder and was reaching above my head when the ladder slipped, and I fell. I grabbed for something, anything that would stop my fall ... and sure enough, what I caught was a large metal hook with various tools hanging on it," Scott said. "It went straight through my hand."

His parents rushed him to the local emergency department, where the doctor told them "that I would need surgery and that I was unlikely to ever regain normal use of my hand, and I would probably lose at least two fingers." But his parents were not deterred.

"They took me immediately to Jewish Hospital [in Louisville], home to one of the premier hand surgery fellowship programs in the country," he continued. "One of their lead surgeons, Dr. Joseph Kutz, operated on my hand that same day. He removed the hook -- tools and all. Dr. Kutz that day saved my hand and saved my fingers, and, although I didn't know it at the time, [was] putting me on the path that led to tonight."

Scott also gave a shout-out to his mother, who was in the audience. "My mom is a remarkable woman -- faith and family have always been at the center of her life," he said. "She hates it when I tell people her age, but at 96, she should be bragging! Still as sharp as a tack. I'll admit that sometimes when I can't remember something, I call her, and she fills in all the details."

A graduate of Vanderbilt University, Scott completed his medical education and residency at University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, and a fellowship at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. He is board-certified in both otolaryngology and facial plastic surgery. Prior to this most recent AMA election, Scott served 4 years as speaker and 4 years as vice speaker of the AMA House of Delegates, and was also a member of the AMA Board of Trustees.

Scott was preceded at the lectern by outgoing AMA president Jesse Ehrenfeld, MD, MPH, who focused his remarks on the promise of AI, noting that "at the AMA we like to say 'augmented intelligence,' not 'artificial intelligence.'"

Although concerns have been expressed that AI could replace doctors in some specialties, "it's important to recognize that AI will not replace physicians, but someday, physicians who use AI will replace those who don't," he said. "This is truly a revolutionary technology that can streamline our workflows and even help with patient diagnosis and treatment."

"Technology may change how we do our jobs, but it can never change who we are as physicians," said Ehrenfeld. "[Patients] need our human connection; they need us to listen. Technology can never replicate or substitute the human emotion that guides our work; it is the beating heart of what we do."

In addition to installing Scott, AMA delegates also elected Bobby Mukkamala, MD, an otolaryngologist in Flint, Michigan, as the organization's president-elect. They also re-elected David Aizuss, MD, a Los Angeles ophthalmologist, and Ilse Levin, DO, MPH, a Washington-area internist, to the board of trustees. And they elected first-time trustees Melissa Garretson, MD, a pediatric emergency physician in Forth Worth, Texas; Lynn Jeffers, MD, MBA, a plastic surgeon in Oxnard, California; and David Welsh, MD, MBA, a general surgeon in Batesville, Indiana.

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