Message from Dr. Powers, Immediate Past President

Nearly two decades ago, I was given the remarkable opportunity to begin serving the American Board of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery as a newly appointed member of the Oral Certifying Examination Committee. As I now conclude my tenure on the Board as Immediate Past President, I find myself experiencing the same two emotions that have accompanied many of the most meaningful moments of my professional life: gratitude and reflection.

I am profoundly grateful to have been recognized, nominated and elected by my peers to serve this organization. There are few greater professional honors than to be entrusted by one’s colleagues with the responsibility of helping safeguard the standards of our specialty. I have never viewed that responsibility as a title or position, but rather as an obligation of service—to our Diplomates, our candidates, our patients, and ultimately to the future of oral and maxillofacial surgery.

Over these many years, I have had the privilege of witnessing remarkable change within ABOMS. Perhaps the accomplishment of which I am most proud was helping shepherd the development and initiation of our Certification Maintenance program. We sought to develop a process that moved beyond episodic recertification and instead embraced continuous professional development, the integration of contemporary surgical practice techniques and lifelong learning into the cycle of recertification. Importantly, we were committed to providing this program to our Diplomates without additional cost. Certification should represent an enduring professional relationship between the surgeon and the Board—not simply an examination completed at periodic intervals throughout one’s career.

That philosophy reflects what I believe ABOMS represents at its best: maintaining rigorous standards while simultaneously supporting the surgeons who have committed themselves to meeting those standards.

None of these accomplishments belongs to one individual. Throughout my service, I have been surrounded by extraordinary Directors, Examination Committee members, Item Writers, ABOMS Staff, volunteers, and colleagues who have given generously of their time and talents. I have learned from each of you. We have debated, challenged assumptions, occasionally disagreed, and ultimately moved forward because of a shared commitment to something greater than ourselves. I also must sincerely thank my family for the countless accommodations and support they gave me over the years to pursue this endeavor.

I also leave with tremendous confidence in the future of ABOMS. Organizations endure not because of the individuals who temporarily occupy positions of leadership, but because each generation accepts the responsibility to leave the institution stronger than they found it. Our Board must continue to innovate, embrace advances in education and assessment, and ensure that board certification remains meaningful to our Diplomates, our profession, and the public we serve.

As we look toward that future, I would offer one final challenge to our Diplomates and to those who will lead our specialty: we must remain fully integrated within the greater healthcare community. Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery has earned its place as an essential surgical specialty through generations of practitioners willing to care for patients across the entire breadth of our scope. We must resist the temptation to define ourselves more narrowly. Maintaining hospital privileges, participating in hospital-based care and remaining active members of the multidisciplinary healthcare team are not simply vestiges of our past—they are essential to protecting the relevance, identity, and future of our specialty. Our scope will ultimately be defined not only by what we are trained and credentialed to do, but by what we remain willing to do for our patients and our communities.

These nearly twenty years of service to ABOMS has represented one of the greatest privileges of my professional career. I leave proud of what we accomplished together, humbled by the trust placed in me, and deeply appreciative of the friendships and relationships developed along the way.

Most importantly, I leave with gratitude—to those who came before us, to those with whom I had the privilege to serve, and to those who will now carry this responsibility forward.

Leadership is temporary. Service is enduring.

Thank you for allowing me the extraordinary privilege of serving you and our specialty.

In service,

David B. Powers, DMD, MD, FACS, FRCS (Ed)
Immediate Past President
American Board of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery