Joe Northup, MD, Associate Professor of Clinical Surgery at Vanderbilt Health and Director of Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery, has been elected the 40th President of the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery (ASMBS).
An ASMBS member since 2005, Northup has served the society as vice president, board member and chair of a committee that aimed to expand insurance coverage for metabolic and bariatric surgery. He has also held leadership positions in ASMBS state chapters in Illinois, Ohio/Kentucky and Virginia.
“New therapies, including GLP-1s, changing payer policies, and growing recognition of the safety, effectiveness and durability of metabolic and bariatric surgery are reshaping obesity care,” Northup said. “As more patients seek treatment, ASMBS will work to ensure they and their clinicians understand where metabolic and bariatric surgery fits within the full continuum of evidence-based, comprehensive obesity care.”
ASMBS CEO Diane Enos, EdD, said Northup was “a proven and experienced leader” who is “exceptionally well equipped to lead ASMBS and navigate new opportunities for both clinicians and patients during such a transformative period in obesity care.”
Northup has received numerous distinctions and awards from ASMBS, including the National LEAD Award for Excellence in Clinical Care, the Distinguished Service Award for Advocacy, and the Committee of the Year Award for the group’s efforts in expanding access to metabolic and bariatric surgery. He also serves as an associate editor of Surgery for Obesity and Related Diseases, the official journal of ASMBS.
Board-certified in general surgery with a focused practice designation in metabolic and bariatric surgery from the American Board of Surgery, Northup has authored numerous scientific publications, contributed to national clinical guidelines on obesity, and is an editor and co-author of the forthcoming third edition of “The ASMBS Textbook of Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery.”
