Catherine French was placed as the assistant executive director for advocacy and professional relations at the American Association of Endodontists (AAE). Headquartered in Chicago, the AAE inspires its members – numbering approximately 8,100 in 76 different countries – to pursue professional advancement and personal fulfillment through education, research, advocacy, leadership, communication, and service, and sponsors the American Board of Endodontics, the only national board responsible for certifying endodontists. In her role, Catherine will serve as a liaison to regulatory and policy-setting agencies, and will manage all stakeholder relations in the areas of endodontic education and professional affairs, as well as monitoring, reporting on, and recommending actions to address non-clinical environmental factors that impact the practice of endodontics.
Catherine comes to the AAE from the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) in Arlington Heights, Illinois, the largest plastic surgery specialty organization in the world, where she served as director of health and payment policy. In this capacity, she managed the transition from ICD-9 to ICD-10 coding and brought the function in-house, advocated for patient safety through the recognition of accredited surgical facilities, developed programs to enhance public awareness of the value of plastic surgery (including managing the ASPS website), and implemented best practices for reconstructive surgery during COVID-19. She also served as a member of the Surgical Care Coalition, a partnership of over 30 specialty societies advocating for fair Medicare reimbursement.
Prior to joining the ASPS, Catherine served as the manager of health policy and advocacy for the American Association of Neuromuscular and Electrodiagnostic Coding in Rochester, Minnesota. She began her career with the Mayo Clinic, working in quality assurance, international finance, and patient financial systems.
Catherine holds a bachelor’s degree in business from Cardinal Stritch University in Milwaukee, and a master’s degree in advocacy and political leadership from the University of Minnesota in Duluth.
Quick Leonard Kieffer’s Jake Barto and Nancy DeMoss led the search to recruit Catherine to the AAE, where her duties will begin on March 7, 2022.
