Yuma doctor elected to national health board

In a first for Arizona, a Yuma doctor has been elected to a national board that helps regulate the industry and keep the public safe.

Dr. Ram Krishna, an orthopedic surgeon, was elected last month by 70 of his peers to the board of directors of the Federation of State Medical Boards. Krishna will be one of 12 board members and hold the post for three years.

The federation is composed of representatives from 70 medical boards: one from each state and 20 doctor of osteopathy representatives.

"I think it's an honor to be elected by them," Krishna said. "I never dreamt this would happen."

And Krishna had stiff competition. There were seven other highly qualified candidates, and in the end, only two were elected.

For the election, Krishna traveled to Washington, D.C., and gave a speech in front of 300 colleagues, followed by a question-and-answer period where the voting delegates had a chance to ask the candidates questions.

This isn't the first time Krishna has held a service position in the field of medicine. In his 28-year career, he's held the honor of Arizona Physician of the Year, is a former chief of surgery at Yuma Regional Medical Center, a member of the state regulatory board and many other accomplishments.

Krishna said this honor is the highest he's obtained so far in his career.

Part of the board's responsibilities include keeping current a nationwide data bank of doctors. Krishna said that way they can keep track of any disciplinary actions against doctors. It's searchable so anyone can know if his or her doctor has been disciplined for any reason.

Along with lobbying at the federal level, he said another responsibility is to provide credential verification services - just one more way to make sure doctors throughout the country are held accountable.

The regulatory board serves in other functions, and the end result is a safer health care system for Americans.

"Safety of the public is the key," Krishna said.

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Stephanie A. Wilken can be reached at swilken@yumasun.com or 539-6857.