





































       V37 N2 / 2022 

©2022 American Medical Writers Association. All rights reserved.  
ISSN 2163-5315

AMWAJournal.org     41

As I write this article, it’s been a few weeks since the AMWA 

Board of Directors (BOD) met for an in-person board meet-

ing in Washington, DC. After two years of virtual meetings 

and numerous phone calls handling the organization’s  

strategic priorities and pertinent business, it felt good to be 

at an in-person BOD meeting. This was not my first travel 

experience since the world opened back up for business. I’ve 

traveled twice before, and on each trip, I had the same mixed 

emotions- trepidation, excitement and a bit of normalcy. 

 One thing I can say is that my recent in-person experi-

ences has rejuvenated me, and I’m motivated more than 

ever to get back to traveling. As I attend several in-person 

celebratory events and make plans to travel with my family 

this summer, I am reminded of how truly blessed I am to  

not only survive through a pandemic, but also thrive in this 

new day.

 Speaking of thriving, AMWA also continues to thrive. 

We’ve seen an increase in membership when other orga-

nizations have seen a decline. Recruiting and maintaining 

members continues to be one of our most important strate-

gic priorities. AMWA is here because of our members, and 

our commitment to serving our members’ needs stays fore-

most in my mind. I am deeply appreciative of the members 

that join the organization and jump right into learning and 

sharing their skills and talents with other AMWA members. 

I believe AMWA’s warm and welcoming atmosphere even 

during the virtual environment has attracted medical  

communicators from a variety of areas and locations 

around the world.

 As part of our discussion at the AMWA Spring Board 

meeting, we reflected on the some of the threats and chal-

lenges to our profession, celebrated the wins of the orga-

nization, and made plans to initiate opportunities that will 

further benefit our members and continue to propel the 

organization forward. 

 Much of the AMWA BOD and staff’s work has centered 

around supporting and implementing our priorities and 

strategies to enhance our members experience, sharpen edu-

cational member tools and resources, and develop a digital 

footprint for the future of the organization. We’ve continued 

to work at an accelerated pace to keep up with the delivery 

of educational materials and resources most important to 

our members. We are excited about the continued growth of 

member resources and the work to come from the Education 

Committee, and I look forward to seeing what’s next for the 

Diversity & Inclusion (D&I) Assessment Task Force.

 Like many of you, I try to stay focused, keep up with 

technology, and develop new skills to stay relevant in my 

field. Being open to learning new skills and transitioning 

your skillset into more opportunities is one of the reasons 

why AMWA has been so important to my growth. Being able 

to transition to new technology and platforms also has been 

an important part of AMWA’s growth, and I am thrilled to 

see it. As you are aware, the AMWA Journal transitioned to a 

digital format in Open Journal Systems (OJS) and launched 

the first digital issue in March.  Not only is the AMWA 

Journal team working to align publication content with the 

organization’s content strategy, they have initiated theme-

based issues and have incorporated guest editors for each 

issue. I hope you’ve had an opportunity to see the Journal in 

its digital format and read some of the rich content. 

 Throughout the first half of my term as President I’ve 

witnessed some great educational programming delivered  

at the chapter level. I’m excited to see innovative and inter-

esting content being offered through virtual programming 

and networking events. Many chapters hosted Spring virtual 

conferences across the AMWA platform, and I am happy to 

know that some members of AMWA’s Executive Committee 

(EC) were able to attend or participate in some of the  

conferences. 

FROM THE PRESIDENT
A New Day

AMWA NEWS

Katrina R. Burton, BS / 2021–2022 AMWA President

http://www.amwajournal.org


AMWAJournal.org     42A New Day

 Speaking of conferences, I look forward to attending 

and presenting at AMWA’s Southeast Regional Conference 

in Fort Myers, Florida this summer. The collaborative con-

ference between the Southeast, Florida, and Carolinas 

chapters’ will be the first in-person AMWA conference in 

more than 2 years, and the conference will offer a variety 

of educational sessions and workshops. I will join other 

AMWA faculty in presenting content from my skillset appli-

cable to medical communicators in different phases of 

their careers.

 As we continue to transition and get back to in-per-

son events at both the chapter and national level, I am 

most excited about the upcoming 2022 Medical Writing 

& Communication Conference taking place in Denver, 

Colorado, Nov. 2-5.  This year’s annual conference theme— 

Elevating Health and Well-Being through Medical 

Communication—perfectly aligns with what we as medical 

communicators strive to do every day. 

 With the 2022 Medical Writing & Communication 

Conference taking place in person this year, some things 

may change with logistics and protocols for safety rea-

sons; however, the rest of the annual conference experi-

ence will remain the same. In addition to networking with 

your peers, and enjoying the local fine dining, conference 

attendees can expect to feel AMWA’s warm and welcoming 

environment; experience a variety of workshops and ses-

sions; and celebrate this year’s John P. McGovern, Walter C. 

Alvarez, and Harold Swanberg award recipients, and more. 

 I hope we will see you in Denver, healthy, thriving and 

ready to have a great experience because you deserve it! 

www.amwa.org/mwc

Three Little Letters.
One Big Deal.

APPLY NOW

Apply by October 17 for December 2022 exam.
Review our applicant handbook, candidate guide, and 
study tips to help you prepare.

http://www.amwajournal.org
http://www.amwa.org/mwc



