V37 N4 / 2022 

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

AMWAJournal.org     52

When I learned about the field of medical writing and 

attended my first AMWA conference, I knew I had found my 

people. However, I had no idea at the time that I’d some-

day be president of AMWA. I am humbled to follow in the 

footsteps of so many other AMWA presidents, people I have 

worked with and admire. And I am grateful for the people 

who will work with me and offer their expertise this year: my 

fellow officers and the rest of the AMWA Board of Directors; 

committee chairs and members; Susan Krug, our Executive 

Director; and the amazing AMWA staff.

 I first heard about AMWA when I 

talked to a freelancer in my area, Julie 

Gelderloos, about medical writing. Julie 

convinced me to join AMWA and attend 

my first conference in 2009 in Dallas. 

I’ve attended the AMWA annual confer-

ence ever since. When the then-president 

of the Rocky Mountain Chapter, Barb 

Zimmerman, asked me to organize the next chapter confer-

ence, I said yes. And that’s how I got sucked in. I later served 

as chapter president and got involved at the national level, 

including chairing a chapter handbook committee. After 

serving at the chapter level, I joined the AMWA Board of 

Directors and served in various roles.

 I say this not to establish my credentials but to point 

out a common theme: each time, someone asked me to do 

something, and I said yes.

 With the guidance of our Executive Director, Susan Krug, 

and the hard work of AMWA staff and volunteers, we have 

weathered the pandemic surprisingly well. As we come out 

of the pandemic, we are revitalizing our volunteer opportu-

nities. AMWA’s call for volunteers opened in late September.

 Without our volunteers, our organization would not 

accomplish as much as we do. You, our members, are 

AMWA. We need our members to help us accomplish 

our goals and build upon what we’ve already achieved. 

Volunteer opportunities include but are not limited to 

selecting content for the annual conference, developing 

and evaluating educational content for our workshops and 

online learning, working for the AMWA Journal, participat-

ing in committees and task forces, and volunteering at the 

chapter or local level. Opportunities range from microvol-

unteering to year-long commitments.

 We also want every member to feel welcome in AMWA. 

Recently, we launched a diversity, equity, and inclusion 

initiative to determine how we can 

make sure a diversity of voices is heard 

within our organization. Everyone 

has their own experiences, both per-

sonal and professional. Everyone has 

their own story. We value our wel-

coming and collaborative environ-

ment in AMWA, but there is always 

room for improvement. Our mission 

remains promoting excellence in medical communication. 

To pursue this mission, we need volunteers with a variety of 

backgrounds and areas of expertise.

 I am excited about the upcoming year and am looking 

forward to seeing what we accomplish. We have a confer-

ence in Baltimore to plan and new and refreshed educa-

tional content to put out. We are constantly reviewing our 

educational offerings to determine what is of value to our 

members. The AMWA Journal is now using a new digi-

tal publishing platform and is updating its processes to 

improve efficiency and enhance the reader experience. We 

have important initiatives in the works, including the value 

of medical writing initiative and our diversity, equity, and 

inclusion initiative. In short, there’s lots to do.

 To all of those people along the way who asked me to 

volunteer for various roles, thank you. I said yes, and I have 

never regretted it. And to my readers I say: say yes. You have 

a place in AMWA.

FROM THE PRESIDENT
Inaugural Address: Say Yes

AMWA NEWS

Elise Eller, PhD / 2022–2023 AMWA President

We need our members 
to help us accomplish our 
goals and build upon what 
we’ve already achieved. 

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