President’s Corner
Kimberly Curseen, MD FAAHPM
AAHPM President
Emory School of Medicine, Emory Palliative Care Center
Welcome back to President’s Corner, a series from AAHPM President Dr. Kimberly Curseen exploring the priorities and perspectives shaping the future of palliative care.
A Year Focused on Impact
As AAHPM looks ahead, the focus is not simply on growth, it is on impact.
For Dr. Kimberly Curseen, this year represents an opportunity to strengthen the Academy’s role in shaping the field of palliative care while delivering meaningful value to its members. That work centers on a set of priorities designed to support clinicians, guide the evolving healthcare landscape, and reinforce the Academy’s leadership.
Defining Standards and Supporting Quality
A central priority is clarifying the role AAHPM should play in developing quality standards, guidelines, and benchmarks.
As palliative care continues to expand, there is growing demand for clearer definitions of what high-quality care should deliver. Clinicians, health systems, policymakers, and patients are all seeking greater consistency and direction.
AAHPM is well positioned to help lead this work developing practical frameworks that support programs across diverse settings. By doing so, the Academy can help ensure that quality is defined by those who understand both the science and the human experience of serious illness care.
Strengthening the Member Experience
Equally important is a renewed focus on members.
AAHPM plays a vital role in supporting clinicians throughout their careers and ensuring that membership delivers meaningful value is essential. That includes education, advocacy, networking, leadership development, and opportunities for connection across the field.
The goal is clear: members should see AAHPM not just as a professional organization, but as a central part of their professional identity and growth. Strengthening that connection will require ongoing attention to what members need and how the Academy can best support them in a changing healthcare environment.
Leading in Hospice Care
Hospice remains a critical part of the Academy’s mission and an area of significant focus.
The field is facing complex challenges, including concerns around oversight and accountability. At the same time, many hospice programs continue to provide extraordinary, mission-driven care to patients and families.
This moment calls for thoughtful leadership.
AAHPM has an important role in helping guide conversations around hospice ensuring they are grounded in patient-centered values, clinical expertise, and a commitment to quality. It is also an opportunity to reinforce the essential role hospice plays within palliative care and to advocate for its continued evolution in a changing healthcare landscape.
Strengthening the Academy’s Voice
Another priority is strengthening AAHPM’s voice through timely and relevant policy leadership.
As healthcare continues to evolve, there is increasing need for clear, credible guidance on issues shaping serious illness care. Position statements and advocacy efforts can play a powerful role in defining the field’s values and informing broader conversations. AAHPM can help ensure that the perspective of palliative care clinicians is represented and that decisions affecting patients and families are informed by both expertise and compassion.
Moving Forward Together
These priorities reflect a broader goal: helping AAHPM evolve alongside the field it represents.
The Academy has long played a key role in supporting the growth of palliative care. Now, there is an opportunity to further shape its future by defining standards, strengthening community, and providing leadership on the issues that matter most.
That work depends not only on organizational direction, but on the engagement of members across the field. Together, there is an opportunity to build a stronger, more connected, and more clearly defined future for palliative care.
This post is part of President’s Corner, a series from AAHPM President Dr. Kimberly Curseen. If you missed the first post, you can read it here.