WALTHAM – Dr. Maryanne C. Bombaugh, past president of the Massachusetts Medical Society, MSc, MBA, FACOG, a gynecologist at the Community Health Center of Cape Cod and a veteran of the United States military, has been honored by the Massachusetts Medical Society as the 2021 recipient of the Woman Physician Leadership Award, an honor recognizing outstanding leadership and contributions to patients and the medical profession by a woman physician.
President of the Massachusetts Medical Society (MMS) from 2019-2020, Bombaugh’s service to the organization also includes Officer and Chair of the Board of Trustees, member on the Committee on Women in Medicine, the Committee on Strategic Planning, Committee on the Quality of Medical Practice, the Finance Committee and task forces on Opioids and Physician Wellness. She is a previous chair and member of the organization’s Committee on Legislation and is a current Advisor to that committee.
She also serves on the Betsy Lehman Center Massachusetts Coalition for Patient Safety where she is a member of the coalition’s executive committee and helps lead its Task Force on Leadership and Governance. She also serves on the Board of the Massachusetts Coalition for the Prevention of Medical Errors.
Bombaugh’s leadership expands to the national level where she is a delegate on the Massachusetts delegation to the American Medical Association (AMA), as well as an AMA Board appointee to the AMA Council on Legislation which considers AMA engagement on national legislation in healthcare, health equity, and healthcare reforms. She also serves on the American Board of Medical Specialties Task Force on Improving Health and Health Outcomes.
Bombaugh was president of the medical society at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and became a leading national voice in calling attention to and pushing to correct the dangers of personal protective equipment scarcity.
“Faced with the immense challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, (Bombaugh) led our society through unprecedented times, advocating for patients, physicians and their practices and collaborating with multiple agencies and organizations,” said Dr. Lynda Young, past resident of the MMS.
Under Dr. Bombaugh’s leadership as president, the MMS became the first medical society in the nation to affirm by organizational policy that enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of health, in all its dimensions, including health care, is a basic human right.
“Dr. Bombaugh’s proactive, inclusive leadership during the Massachusetts COVID-19 outbreak proved how well matched she was to drive statewide policies for health equity, antiracism and physician protections,” Dr. Patricia Falcao said.
Bombaugh, who served 12 years in the United States Army Medical Corps, earned her undergraduate degree from Smith College, a Master of Science degree from the School of Public Health at the University of Massachusetts, and her master’s in business administration from the Isenberg School of Management at the University of Massachusetts.
The Massachusetts Medical Society (MMS) is the statewide professional association for physicians and medical students, supporting 25,000 members. We are dedicated to educating and advocating for the physicians of Massachusetts and patients locally and nationally. A leadership voice in health care, the MMS contributes physician and patient perspectives to influence health-related legislation at the state and federal levels, works in support of public health, provides expert advice on physician practice management, and addresses issues of physician well-being. Under the auspices of the NEJM Group, the MMS extends our mission globally by advancing medical knowledge from research to patient care through the New England Journal of Medicine, NEJM Catalyst, and the NEJM Journal Watch family of specialty publications, and through our education products for health care professionals: NEJM Knowledge+, NEJM Resident 360, and our accredited and comprehensive continuing medical education programs.
