2023 Year End Appeal

Dear Friends and Colleagues, 

Thank you so much for your steadfast support of The New York Academy of Medicine (NYAM). All through my first year as president of this storied institution, I have seen clear evidence of your powerful impact. 

Together, you and NYAM are playing a unique and essential role in striving to address and dismantle the health inequities that deprive too many people of their right to good health. You are helping NYAM serve as a bridge toward a more equitable, healthier future for our New York community, and beyond. 

Our deep understanding and documentation of New York’s public health history and current needs allow us to link our past, present, and future, serving not only as an historical repository, but as a contemporary change agent. And our groundbreaking work in community-informed research makes it possible for healthcare organizations and community-based institutions, to serve their beneficiaries more effectively. 

At the heart of everything we do is the belief that change begins with community voices. Your generous financial support helps place those voices at the center of our research, advocacy, and partnerships.

Together, we are building the knowledge necessary to transform systems and enable healthy lives for all. 

I’m hoping that, in recognition of the vital work you and NYAM are advancing, you will step forward once again and make a generous year-end contribution. As you consider this request, let me offer just a few recent examples of the impact you are having: 

• We partnered with Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso on the landmark Comprehensive Plan for Brooklyn. This trail-blazing initiative is the first borough-specific, large-scale planning effort ever in NYC, setting a crucial precedent. The plan is a data-driven vision for a more equitable future for Brooklyn, focusing on the dual crises of public health and housing. 

• NYAM is at the forefront of addressing disparities in healthcare through our work in support of the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene’s Coalition to End Racism in Clinical Algorithms project. This initiative is reevaluating medical protocols that have historically led to health disparities. Notable examples are in kidney and lung disease diagnosis, as well as obstetrics, where removing racial biases in the algorithms has led to more accurate diagnoses and increased access to transplants. 

• Looking ahead, NYAM is poised to play a pivotal role in the future of healthcare. New York Governor Kathy Hochul has appointed me, along with some of the nation’s foremost healthcare experts, to the Commission on the Future of Health Care to help build a resilient healthcare system that leads the nation and delivers every New Yorker the care they deserve. 

There’s more. In just the past few months, we’ve released new research on the resilience of older adults in a post-COVID-19 era and a Declaration of Rights for Children and Families of East Harlem crafted by the community members of our East Harlem Action Collaborative. And our Fellows program hosted public screenings to reduce prostate cancer among Black men. 

In a holiday season that is unseasonably warm due to the climate crisis, we also hosted the third installment of our Around the Table event series with climate and health champions, welcoming experts in addressing the challenges posed to health by climate change. This series sets the stage for NYAM’s leadership in building a more resilient healthcare system in response to increasing number of climate-related events. 

As these few examples make clear, our work is about real-world impact to meet the needs of those we serve with agility and empathy. 

In our 176th year, we are more committed than ever to innovating for the health of NYC, the nation, and the planet. In a world facing growing health disparities, compounded by the pressures of climate change, your key support equips us to meet these challenges head-on. 

Thank you so much for all you are doing to help NYAM catalyze change and amplify the voices of everyone who cares about health in New York and beyond. 

I hope you are proud of the role you are playing in this vital work, and I urge you to carry forward our most essential initiatives by sending us a year-end donation that is as generous as possible. 

With gratitude and warm wishes for the holiday season, 

Ann Kurth, PhD, CNM, MPH 
President,
The New York Academy of Medicine

P.S. Your generous support says so much about the kind of person you are, someone deeply committed to ending inequities and creating a brighter, healthier future for all. Please let us hear from you.