AAPI’s 41st Convention will Focus on: “True and Total Health is the Wellbeing of Mind, Body, and Spirit”

“True and Total Health is the Wellbeing of Mind, Body, and Spirit” will be the theme for the 41st annual Convention 2023 of the American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin (AAPI) planned to be held at the iconic Marriott Downtown in Philadelphia, PA from July 6th-9th, 2023” Dr. Ravi Kolli, President of AAPI announced during a press meet on April 25, 2023.

The virtual press conference was addressed by Dr. Ravi Kolli, President of AAPI, Dr. V. Ranga, Chair of AAPI Board of Trustees, Dr. Satheesh Kathula, Vice President of AAPI, Dr. Meher Medavaram, Secretary of AAPI, Dr. Sumul Raval, Treasurer of AAPI, and Dr. Sreeni Gangasani, CME Chair, who has been newly elected as the Treasurer-Elect of AAPI.

Dr. Kolli informed the media that AAPI successfully concluded its annual election with the participation of over 5,000 members to elect a new leadership team that will be taking charge at the convention. Headed by Dr. Anjana Samadder, the only 5th woman president of AAPI in its 41 years long history, the new team will comprise of Dr. Satheesh Kathula as the President-Elect, Dr. Amit Chakrabarty as the Vice President, Dr. Sumul Raval as the Secretary; Dr. Sreeni Ganagasani as the Treasurer; and Lokesh Edara – as the Chair, Board of Trustees.

Dr. Ravi Kolli will continue to serve AAPI as the Immediate Past President of AAPI and help the leadership in their tasks as needed. In response to a question on his tenure as president of AAPI, Dr. Kolli said “I maintained good relations with everyone, every group, every region, and everybody. I am very proud of my contributions in bringing people together and reaching out to team members to reach their with full potential.”

While describing the schedule for the three-day convention, Dr. Kolli said, the convention will be addressed by eminent speakers, including Indian- American Congressmen, Ro Khanna, Raja Krishnamoorthi, and Ami Bera, and Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal as well as senators, Governors of Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Mika Singh will perform at the convention along with other artists, and Miss England will also attend as a special guest.

Additionally, Spiritual guide of Heartfulness Meditation and Padma Bhushan awardee, Kamlesh Patel commonly known as Daaji, Her Holiness Jagadguru Sai Ma, representatives from Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS), and other spiritual institutions have been invited. CME speakers and faculty from prestigious institutions including U Penn, Harvard and Stanford will also participate in the convention, AAPI president Ravi Kolli informed.

Dr. Kolli said that the event will host panel discussions on the future of health care, CEO forums, and sessions on artificial intelligence and emerging technologies in conjunction with entertainment and cultural sessions.

According to Dr. Ranga, “The American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin Convention offers an exciting venue to interact with leading physicians, health professionals, academicians, and scientists of Indian origin. Physicians and healthcare professionals from across the country will convene and participate in the scholarly exchange of medical advances, to develop health policy agendas, and to encourage legislative priorities in the coming year.”

“AAPI Convention will focus on addressing physician burnout and the Convention team has planned several wellness packages,” said Dr. Anjana Samadder, President-Elect of AAPI. “As we witness a significant increase in physician burnout, Convention will be an opportunity to relax, interact with your colleagues, and learn effective ways to address the challenges in caring for patients and care for self and thus avoid burnout,” Dr. Samadder added.  

“Our Annual Convention in Philadelphia is just around the corner.  Our team is working very hard with great enthusiasm, and they are all very excited to see you in this fantastic memorable event. Some of the highlights of the convention are: Very informative CMEs, product theaters; Women’s Forum, CEO Forum, Financial Seminars, Spiritual sessions &Yoga, Obesity awareness walk, Alumni reunions, Local Tours, Special programs for non-physician spouses, and lots more,” said Dr. Raghunandan Lolabhattu, CEO & Acting Chair of Convention 2023 and Vice Chair of Board of Trustees, AAPI.

“We will have one of the very best conventions in history,” Dr. Kathula said. “The convention will focus on Mental Health as well as Physical health and various other medical specialty updates, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, Convener of the Convention stated that “Medical Jeopardy, Research, and Poster presentations by medical students, will be a great way to bring the next generation of physicians into AAPI  and will help accomplish the mission of AAPI. In addition, advocacy to dismantle the stigma of mental illness and Suicide Prevention will be the highlight of the program.”

While describing the many initiatives of AAPI both in India and the United States over the past four decades, Dr. Medavaram said, “The American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin Convention offers an exciting venue to interact with leading physicians, health professionals, academicians, and scientists of Indian origin. Physicians and healthcare professionals from across the country will convene and participate in the scholarly exchange of medical advances, to develop health policy agendas, and to encourage legislative priorities in the coming year.”

Dr. Raval said, “The scientific program, comprising of CMEs and workshops at the convention are developed by leading experts with contributions from the Scientific Advisory Board and the International Scientific Committee. The workshops will be led by world-famous physicians on topics relevant to the needs of the time.” Discussions and deliberations will address the Stigma of Mental illness, Suicide prevention, Management of Chronic diseases and NCD and, other health issues including Climate Change and its impact on health will be discussed, he added.

Dr. Gangasani referred to some of the topics for the CMEs will include Psychiatry, Ophthalmology, Pediatrics, Gastroenterology, Neurology, and Oncology. “In our efforts to realize the core mission of AAPI, which is to share the best from leading experts from around the world, to collaborate on clinical challenges, the convention will have clinical tracks that are of vital to healthcare leaders and members,” Dr. Gangasani added.  

While urging all AAPI members to make plans and be part of the historic Convention, Dr. Kolli said: “We have a wonderful team planning and organizing the event to make the 2023 annual convention a memorable experience. Please reach out to any one of the representatives from the Philly team for any of your queries and visit www.aapiconvention.org  for more details or call the AAPI office at (630) 990 2277 for further information.