50 Years of the Association of Medical School Pediatric Department Chairs—Going Strong!

Charles Janeway, Professor and Chairman of Pediatrics at Harvard and Boston Children’s Hospital, informally convened a small group of pediatric chairs at the annual American Pediatric Society (APS)–Society for Pediatric Research (SPR) meeting 50 years ago to discuss common challenges.¹ This inaugural meeting was followed, in 1961, by a second meeting of 84 chairs at the Brookhaven National Laboratories on Long Island, leading to the birth of the “Chairmen of Pediatrics in American and Canadian Schools.” In 1964, the group adopted a constitution and bylaws and changed its name to the “Association of Medical School Pediatric Department Chairmen,” becoming officially incorporated in 1967. In 1997, the name was changed to the “Association of Medical School Pediatric Department Chairs (AMSPDC),” in recognition of the increasingly significant role of women leaders within the organization. Details of the early history of AMSPDC have been chronicled previously.¹ The membership of AMSPDC now consists of the chair, acting chair, or academic administrative head of the department of pediatrics of each of 141 of the 150 Liaison Committee on Medical Education-accredited medical schools in the United States and Canada.

AAP, American Academy of Pediatrics, ABP, American Board of Pediatrics, AMSPDC, Association of Medical School Pediatric Department Chairs, APPD, Association of Pediatric Program Directors, APS, American Pediatric Society, COMSEP, Council on Medical Student Education in Pediatrics, CoPS, Council of Pediatric Subspecialties, FIS, Frontiers in Science Program, FOPO, Federation of Pediatric Organizations, JCNPS, Joint Council of National Pediatric Societies, NACHRI, National Association of Children’s Hospital and Related Institutions, NIH, National Institutes of Health, PPC, Public Policy Council, PSDP, Pediatric Scientist Development Program, SPR, Society for Pediatric Research