Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Statement on Diversity

The AAO-HNS affirms that in order to continue to work for the best ear, nose, and throat care, we must support and encourage diversity in our membership.

We acknowledge that culturally effective care is predicated on cultural sensitivity and cultural competence. We are committed to diversity and equal opportunity for our members. The Academy affirms its dedication to diversity by ensuring and developing opportunity for leadership positions within the Academy that are accessible to all Fellows, including underrepresented minorities within our specialty.

We maintain that achieving diversity requires an enduring commitment to inclusion that must find full expression in our organizational culture, values, norms, and behaviors. Throughout our work, we will support diversity in all of its forms, encompassing but not limited to age, disability status*, economic circumstance, ethnicity, gender, race, religion, and sexual orientation.

Leading by example we aspire to make diversity a core and abiding strength of the otolaryngology community.

*The term “disability” means, with respect to an individual, a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities of such individual; major life activities include, but are not limited to, caring for oneself, performing manual tasks, seeing, hearing, eating, sleeping, walking, standing, lifting, bending, speaking, breathing, learning, reading, concentrating, thinking, communicating and working. (Americans with Disabilities Act, 1990)

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The Changing Face of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Otolaryngology

How will evolving federal and state oversight shape the future of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in otolaryngology? Join a dynamic panel of leaders working at the intersections of training, research, and organizational leadership. They’ll unpack emerging policies, share real-world implications for clinicians and trainees, and discuss practical strategies to advance equitable care and inclusive workplaces across our specialty.

Support Diversity in the Specialty

The Academy supports diversity and inclusion in the specialty. You can take part by serving on the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee, and by contributing to the Diversity Endowment, Harry Barnes Endowment, and the Women In Otolaryngology Endowment.

The Diversity Endowment to provides critical funding of programs that will facilitate education and awareness, create an atmosphere of inclusion, and encourage pursuit of the specialty by underrepresented minorities. This endowment was set up to provide funding for:

• Harry Barnes Endowment Travel Grant provides two $1,000 Travel Grants to assist with needed funding for meritorious, young residents of African descent from the United States, Caribbean, or Canada to participate in career molding educational experiences while attending the AAO-HNSF Annual Meeting & OTO EXPO.
• Grants for medical student rotations in otolaryngology
  • Experiences of the 2023 URM Away Rotation Grant Recipients: Part 3
  • Experiences of the 2023 URM Away Rotation Grant Recipients: Part 2
  • Experiences of the 2023 URM Away Rotation Grant Recipients
  • AAO-HNSF URM Away Rotation Report: New York University
  • URM Away Rotation Grant Report: Georgetown University School of Medicine
• Distinguished research prizes for medical student papers
• CORE Grants for research related to underrepresented populations and for underrepresented researchers
• Marketing outreach to encourage awareness of diversity and inclusion and AAO-HNS/F efforts and resources in these areas