President-Elect
Yasmin Khakoo, MD, FAAN, FAAP
I am honored to be nominated for president-elect of the Child Neurology Society for 2024-28. Although I possess leadership experience in the American Academy of Neurology (AAN), and the United Council for Neurologic Subspecialties (UCNS) and am a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), my primary professional allegiance is to the CNS.
I am the child of two immigrant physicians who worked in underserved NYC hospitals and modeled a culture of service to others, which I have strived to emulate. I am also the wife of a physician scientist and the parent of two young adults, whose crucial transition from child to adult was marred by the pandemic. I am a board-certified pediatrician, child neurologist and neuro-oncologist at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) and Professor of Clinical Pediatrics at Weill Cornell Medical College (WCMC). I care for children and young adults with primary brain tumors and have focused my career on onco-neurology: the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of neurologic complications in patients receiving cancer treatment. While I have been recognized for clinical excellence annually since 2013 by Castle Connolly, I am more honored to be seen as a trusted resource for medical colleagues and others. I have been recognized as an educator and received the 2021 WCMC Pediatric Neurology Faculty Teaching Award from the neurology residents. I have developed leadership expertise in faculty development, especially for women and underrepresented physicians, APPs, and trainees.
What key experiences within the CNS or other professional organizations have been most impactful or rewarding for you, and how have these experiences influenced your vision for advancing the strategic goals and direction of the CNS?
Milestone experiences within the CNS include my first platform presentation as a trainee in 1997, presenting Symposia in 2017 and 2021, my work with the Scientific Selection and Program Planning Committee (SSPPC) from 2012-2023: member 2012-19, associate chair 2019-20, and chair 2021-23, and member of the 2021 inaugural Leadership, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (LDEI) Committee. In 2023, I was elected to the Board of Directors as CNS Councilor for the East and received the CNS Arnold P. Gold Humanism in Medicine Award
Child neurologists are often caught between pediatrics and neurology departments, and our voices may get lost. The CNS is an organization comprised of talented and innovative members who prioritize patient care, education, research and advocacy, and our spirit is captured by “though we be small, we be mighty” (adapt., Shakespeare). The appointment of a new executive director in September 2022 has afforded new opportunities to further grow our society in several arenas. Our strategic plan was developed in conjunction with an outside consultant, and I am encouraged by changes already in progress. With the post-pandemic demands on us to see more patients, bring in more grants, and work harder, with shrinking travel, CME, and membership budgets, it is incumbent that we in the CNS leadership ensure that our constituents receive maximal value for their membership.
The inaugural Fellow of the CNS (FCNS) designation was rolled out in June 2024, with nearly 60 applications.
I wrote letters of support for several candidates and wrote countless promotion letters and applications for awards and leadership programs for Child Neurologists and other physicians.
Proposal and abstract submission for non-ICNA associated CNS annual meetings is currently at a record high, in part, because of renewed interest in CNS by trainees and early career faculty. As a recent co-chair of the SSPPC, I worked with the team to increase transparency of the proposal and abstract process: we gave points for diversity and provided feedback to both successful and unsuccessful proposal submitters. The Junior Member offerings during the CNSAM are a highlight, providing sessions on job searches, negotiation, grant applications and effective time management. The current SSPPC chairs cross-pollinate from other societies to create the best possible programming experience for CNS members.
What are the most challenging issues facing child neurologists today, and how would the CNS, under your leadership, help its members meet those challenges?
As President, I will ensure that we address issues including fertility preservation, transition to retirement while being connected to the CNS community, and job choices for the dual career couple, single parent, or members with eldercare responsibilities. Additionally, we will address the needs of all members and affiliates: not only those pursuing academic and practice-based career paths, but also those interested in industry, hospitalist, and even concierge medicine. We know that the shortage of pediatricians, especially subspecialists, is a national health crisis. We are in a unique position to support our midlevel partners (nurse practitioners and physician assistants) to provide outstanding focused, safe care while we, the physicians, continue to make high-stakes decisions and develop new therapies. The Association of Child Neurology Nurses (ACNN), a partner of the CNS, will be instrumental in designing training programs and certification governance in the next decade.
To bolster the financial health of the CNS, our ED created sponsorship opportunities with “local hosts,” institutions in the environs of our meeting venues (thank you 2024 hosts UCLA and CHOC). We have also increased our efforts exploring partnerships with industry. Our constituency voted to merge the Professors and Educators in Child Neurology with CNS into the Educators of Child Neurology Committee. As a BOD member I was involved in restructuring the CNS Committees this year to optimize their impact. At a time when many businesses are dismantling DEI committees and training, we elected to maintain our LDEI Committee which will ensure that all sectors of our Society will uphold the tenets of equity, diversity, and inclusion. As president, I will periodically reassess the committee structures and create task forces to address ad hoc issues, like updating bylaws once our industry partnerships are created.
I will promote generational harmony so all members have access to improved well-being; we must not only retain current child neurologists but also continue to engage new ones as early as elementary school. As a graduate of the AAN Women Leading in Neurology Program, I realize the value of a formal mentorship program. Senior members are a terrific resource for a formal mentoring program. With the help of the Junior Member and LDEI teams, I will create a CNS leadership development program. In 2020, I was a mentor in the Weill Cornell Travelers program encouraging Black, Indigenous People of Color (BIPOCs) to enter health careers. My proudest moment this year was when the undergraduate student (survivor of traumatic brain injury in her 20’s), assigned to me, graduated from nursing school.
As Editor-in-Chief of Pediatric Neurology since 2022, I have increased diversity of our board members, authors, and reviewers. I invited early- and mid-career first authors to contribute timely editorials, including Sexual and Gender Minority Health, Child Neurology in the Post-Roe Era, and Transformative Impact of Sleep on Child and Adolescent Well-Being. In response to the novel targeted directed therapies for many previously fatal neurologic conditions, I have commissioned our 2025 special issue: “Survivorship in Child Neurology.” In response to child neurology voices, the AAN strategic mission includes continuum of care across the lifespan. Now is the time to strengthen collaborations with the AAN and ensure every patient has lifetime access to the care they need.
Addressing our members’ needs for more and consistent education, the CNS increased the number and quality of educational offerings throughout the year. The stunning, user-friendly CNS Education Center website is a prelude to revamping our webpage. All recent CNSAM CME eligible sessions and webinars are available to both members and non-members, who need only create a free account. Next year the CNSAM platform sessions will also be CME-eligible and available to view. I would like to see sessions conducted in Spanish and American Sign Language to engage international and ADA members. The recent roll out of the CNS-sponsored genetics curriculum (akin to the Pellock Resident Seminar) is also a testament to the collaboration between our members and the leadership.
Some of you have asked how I can take on multiple responsibilities. Several of my appointments with the AAN and UCNS will end in the Spring of 2025. As a proponent of succession planning, I appointed a co-Chair to the AAN Child Neurology abstract selection committee. Prior to agreeing to be nominated, I secured a pledge from my MSK and WCMC leadership to provide protected time to do so. I will call upon the Board of Directors, committee chairs, CNS National Office team, and the ED to continue the hard work towards some of the above goals. It’s an important time to be a child neurologist, and I hope you will consider me for the job of CNS president-elect. Thank you.