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AAPI elects Dr Sunil Kaza as new chair of trustees board
AAPI will make the announcement during its annual convention, which has been renamed the World Health Congress and is scheduled to take place in New York from July 18-22.
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Nashville-based interventional cardiologist Dr Sunil Kaza. / Courtesy Photo
The governing body of the American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin (AAPI) has elected prominent Indian-American cardiologist, Dr Sunil Kaza as the chair of its board of trustees (BOT) for the year 2024-25.
The election took place at a properly convened meeting of the Spring Governing Body of AAPI at Mint restaurant in Garden City, NY with a full quorum. 24 of the 25 members who voted “in person” in the secret ballot endorsed Kaza’s candidature, a news release noted.
“The election was conducted candidly and transparently by the sitting BOT chair Dr. Lokesh Edara. The documentation, including meeting minutes, was sent soon after to the AAPI office,” the Nashville, Tennessee-based physician said in a statement.
According to Edara, the current chair of the Board of Trustees, Kaza emerged victorious by defeating two other candidates at the ballot and his election was “further ratified” on June 19 by a majority of the Board of Trustees.
However, controversy erupted surrounding Kaza’s election as chair of the board of trustees of the reputed national organization.
“A second, unconventional, alternate duplicate election was conducted by the AAPI President. The President traditionally is not supposed to get involved in the BOT chair election. It was done via Election Buddy software in an “extremely cryptic” manner without declaring who received the ballots and who voted,” Kaza claimed.
Additionally, he claims that discrepancies were found in the alternate duplicate election as many legitimate Governing Body members did not get the ballot in the alternate duplicate election conducted by the President.
The Board of Trustees' new chair is typically announced by AAPI during its annual convention, which has been renamed the World Health Congress and is scheduled to take place in New York from July 18-22.
“The senior leaders in the organization can initiate a dialogue with the parties involved, hash out the differences and reach a compromise. In precedence from a few years ago, when a similar impasse occurred, both chairs of the Board of Trustees agreed to share the term for six months each,” Kaza , who is hopeful of a resolution to the contested election, said.
“I would like to work with everybody, the executive committee and board and continue to do the right thing for the organization and move it forward. I’ll continue to work on charitable and educational activities, mentoring students and residents,” Kaza added.
As BOT chair, Kaza hopes to implement AAPI's ongoing projects in India, such as promoting the HPV vaccine to reduce cervical cancer deaths, growing CPR awareness that can save lives, and strengthening free health clinics nationwide.
Kaza, an interventional cardiologist for 23 years in Nashville, has served in many leadership roles at AAPI, the largest ethnic medical organization, including on its Board of Trustees (2022-25). The board-certified physician in internal medicine, cardiology, nuclear medicine, and echocardiography is currently serving veterans.
Born and educated in Hyderabad, India, Kaza has held leadership roles including chair of the Department of Medicine, chief of staff at Skyline Medical Center, and board member and director of Interventional Cardiology. He has also been the regional director of OGKTMA (Osmania, Gandhi, Kakatiya, and Telangana Medical Colleges Alumni Association).
For many years, Kaza has been engaged in charitable and philanthropic endeavors in both India and the United States, guided by his motto of 'Manava Seve, Madhava Seva '. He has personally donated over $500,000 to various causes and raised significant funds for Covid relief in India.
For 15 years, he served as the fundraising chair for the Sri Ganesha Temple in Nashville, where he raised more than $5 million to support the temple's expansion. He raised an additional $80,000 to combat human trafficking in India as the convener of the AAPI GB meeting. As president of ATMGUSA (Association of Telugu Medical Graduates in the USA), he recently collaborated with Ekam USA to raise more than $40,000 to support the empowerment of women and children in India.
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