The Foundation invites speakers of international repute, up-and-coming leaders and respected professionals of ENT research and clinical work.

KEYNOTE SPEAKERS

Dr Karen Kost

Dr Karen Kost is a Professor of Otolaryngology at McGill University in Montreal (Canada), where she is also the Director of the Voice and Dysphagia Laboratory. She is active within several societies including the American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery (AAO-HNS) and the Triological Society, and is the first Canadian female to complete her Triological Thesis. With an interest in global health Karen worked in the Canadian Arctic for over 20 years, performed the first surgical procedure in Northern Quebec and participated in 2 humanitarian medical missions in remote villages of the Himalayas. Karen is the recipient of an impressive list of awards and prizes, including the prestigious Helen B Krause Trailblazer Award from the Women in Otolaryngology section of the AAO-HNS.

Prof Mahmood Bhutta

Mahmood is the inaugural Professor in ENT at Brighton and Sussex Medical School (UK). He has a clinical and academic interest in ear and hearing care in low resource settings, and in particular models for management of chronic suppurative otitis media. He is honorary consultant to the World Health Organisation programme for prevention of deafness and hearing loss, and was the recipient of the 2024 Nikhil J Bhatt International Humanitarian Award by the American Academy of Otolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery. Mahmood also works with national and international partners on environmental and labour rights harms in healthcare supply chains, and on this topic is advisor to several government organisations.

DR Charles Limb

Dr. Charles Limb is the Francis A. Sooy Professor of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery and the Chief of the Division of Otology, Neurotology and Skull Base Surgery at UC San Francisco, where he is also the Director of the Douglas Grant Cochlear Implant Center. Charles is internationally recognised for his research on the neurobiology of music, which has been featured by media outlets including TED, the New York Times, National Geographic, Scientific American, and the Sundance Film Festival. Amongst myriad awards and prizes, most recently Charles was the recipient of the 2024 Stibitz-Wilson Award from the American Computer and Robotics Museum.