Ann Kurth named next NYAM president. In a historic first, Ann Kurth has been named the next president of the New York Academy of Medicine (NYAM), the first nurse and first nonphysician to lead the 175-year-old institution. The NYAM's mission is to advance public health and health equity through research, education and community programs, and policy initiatives. Kurth is an internationally renowned epidemiologist and certified nurse midwife who most recently served as dean of the Yale School of Nursing and professor of epidemiology of microbial diseases at the Yale School of Public Health.