Jeffrey Wang, M.D., past president of the North American Spine Society (NASS), is the 2020 recipient of the organization’s Spine Advocacy Award for his contribution to federal advocacy efforts on behalf of patients and NASS members.
“It was a truly unexpected honor,” says Dr. Wang, professor of Orthopaedic Surgery and Neurosurgery at the Keck Medical Center at the University of Southern California (USC), co-director of the USC Spine Center and fellowship director of the USC Spine Fellowship. “Looking back on my presidential year and the past year, I initially thought, ‘I’m not sure that I deserve this.’ And then people pointed out my role in various advocacy efforts. Frankly, I just thought I was doing my job…this recognition is a pleasant surprise.”
He told OTW, “Advocacy is not something that the majority of NASS members are tuned into, so perhaps that is why I made it more of a priority throughout my tenure with the board and as president, and during the past year as the Immediate Past-President.”
Dr. Wang Created Opportunities for the Organization
“I made it a point to go to as many functions as possible where there were government representatives in attendance. In addition, I took part in ‘side’ meetings when Congress members and Representatives spend time with NASS members in order to learn about their concerns.”
Dr. Wang also organized a number of dinners with government representatives, both “on the road” at meetings as well as in his hometown of Los Angeles. “We held national webinars with Congress members and Representatives in order to lay out the issues that we are seeing in spine surgery.”
Taking Advocacy Overseas
On the international level, Dr. Wang was involved with a coalition of international spine societies. “My goal was to encourage my colleagues in these organizations to build out their existing offerings. Recently, we have just formed ‘Spine 20’ so that we can interface with the G-20 and advocate for additional funding for spine research and protocols for appropriate value-based care.”
Dr. Wang earned his M.D. at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. In 1997, he joined the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA as Assistant Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery, in 2002 also was appointed Assistant Professor of Neurosurgery, and became a full Professor in both disciplines. He became Vice Chair of the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery and served as the spine fellowship director. In 2013, he was recruited to the University of Southern California Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at the Keck School of Medicine at USC, and became Co-Director of the USC Spine Center.
