AMA eVoice Weekly Newsletter

An urgent appeal—two ways to help

Last week all medical school deans in the country received a request from Yale University to  help one of Yale's first-year medical students. Her name is Natasha Collins, and she is in remission now from acute myelogenous leukemia but needs a bone marrow transplant to survive. Because she's biracial (African-American and Caucasian), it will be difficult to find a match.

Yale has asked that folks consider registering as a bone marrow donor. Registering is simple and takes as little as five minutes. A kit will be mailed to your home; you swab the inside of your cheeks and mail it back. There's a $52 registration fee, but often one can find a free option.

Natasha grew up in Syracuse, N.Y., graduated from Cornell University, and is a stellar student and committed to a life as a physician. She is a loving daughter and generous friend and has touched many lives. Her family and friends are hoping against hope that you or someone you know will register and be a match.

I called our local bone marrow transplant facility, Roswell Park Cancer Institute, for more information, and learned that people can register as bone marrow donors very easily. I also learned that donors must be at least 18 years old and preferably under 60. If you register now, it may be years before you are a match for a person in need, and then there will be a decision about stem cell donation or marrow donation.

My son David registered at Roswell a few years ago and was called this year since he was found to be a good match for someone. It wasn't that much discomfort, he told me, and his recipient is doing well by all accounts. If each of us posted a notice in our offices for patients to read, this appeal from Yale's medical school may have a successful outcome. Let's blanket the country and see if we can help Natasha. And there are many more Natasha's out there.

One more recent event illustrates another important way we can help. A 19-year-old honors student from our area was horsing around with friends in his college dorm two weeks ago. He fell sliding down a banister, fractured his neck and died. No alcohol or drugs were involved, just the sort of crazy behavior most of us have engaged in at one time or another. Out of this tragedy, seven people were given a new chance to live or to see again since his organs were donated.

Since 1990, the number of patients awaiting an organ transplant has grown from just over 20,000 to more than 102,000. The U.S. Department of Health & Human Services' Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network has the most current numbers on the U.S. waiting list for each organ. In 2006, nearly 7,200 patients died while waiting for a life-saving transplantation. Of those patients, 62 percent were waiting for a kidney, 27 percent a liver, 6 percent a heart and 4 percent a lung.

The federal Conditions of Participation from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services require that persons in participating hospitals initiating a discussion about organ donation with a family should be trained and skilled in doing so. This requirement is problematic for many physicians who are not adequately trained or prepared to discuss organ donation with families. Poor decision-making and poor communication skills combine to produce family dissatisfaction and anxiety on the part of health care providers that can escalate into dilemmas and conflicts, with potentially detrimental consequences for organ retrieval.

Our AMA House of Delegates and our Council on Science and Public Health have studied ways to increase organ donation. Our Code of Medical Ethics contains several ethical opinions on organ transplantation and speaks to the obligation of physicians to support access to medical care, including efforts to maximize the number of organs for transplantation by ethical means. Our Council on Ethical and Judicial Affairs has also examined opt-out vs. opt-in and mandated or presumed consent proposals. We have no fewer than 53 policies relating to this important topic. Although we have better methods of transplantation and immunosuppression now, they are useless if no organ is available.

The AMA completed a joint study in 2002 with the Health Resources and Services Administration that examined the physician's role in the recruitment of organ donors. This study focused on the opportunities and barriers to physician participation in the consent process and on physicians' collaboration with Organ Procurement Organization coordinators and requestors in efforts to improve donation rates. Results showed the need to explore the use of designated physician-requestors, to adequately certify designated requestors, and to clarify roles and responsibilities and develop protocols and best practices that place the request in the context of end-of-life decision-making.

In 1998 the AMA launched "Live and Then Give," a national donation awareness program aimed at increasing physician awareness of the need for organ donation. This program, modeled after the successful program originating with the Texas Medical Association, the Texas Medical Alliance and the Texas Transplant Society, began with a pledge of organ donation by every member of the AMA House of Delegates.

Phil Berry Jr., MD, a former member of the AMA House of Delegates from Texas and a liver transplant recipient himself, initiated the program and was its powerful spokesperson. He told how his life changed when he developed end stage liver disease due to viral hepatitis, contracted from an unknown patient in the course of his orthopedic surgery practice. He had weeks to live when a liver became available and he underwent the transplant. I heard Phil tell his story to several medical audiences, always moving them to tears as he described his new lease on life, thanks to the generosity that arose from another family's tragedy.

"Live and Then Give" encourages physicians to lead by example—by teaching physicians more about organ donation and by encouraging physicians to become organ donors themselves. As part of the campaign, the AMA has provided educational materials, including a guidebook for health care professionals on organ donation tips for patient education, to state medical societies and their alliance organizations of member spouses. The campaign also encourages physicians, their families and staff to sign donor cards.

We need to remember how precious health and life itself is, and make sure we talk with family members and our patients about the gift of organ donation. Let's be sure we know the laws in our state and, if inclined, that we do whatever is necessary to make our own wishes in this regard known to our loved ones. I've talked with my children about this, but I admit that sometimes I forget to sign my driver's license when it has to be renewed. It's a pain to do it at each renewal, but at least we don't have to have a witnessed signature in New York anymore. Why do we make it so hard?

Think about it. Why not live—and then give?

E-mail comments, questions and replies to Dr. Nielsen

1) AMA presses private payer reform agenda in states
The AMA's campaign to reform private payer practices continues to gain momentum nationwide.

In March, Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman signed two comprehensive reform bills, including sweeping managed care and transparency acts that improve payment practices, increase administrative efficiencies, promote consumer transparency and implement more rigorous standards for health insurance markets. The AMA worked closely with the Utah Medical Association to enact these groundbreaking laws.

Last month the Georgia Senate passed a resolution that creates the Health Care Provider Rental Network Contract Arrangements Senate Study Committee, which is charged with providing legislative recommendations to the Senate for the 2010 session. The AMA worked closely with the Medical Association of Georgia (MAG) on this issue in this session and will continue to collaborate with MAG to pass rental network regulation in 2010.

Also last month, Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley signed significant managed care fair-contracting reforms, including two bills that strengthen physician credentialing in Maryland and another that strengthens the state's prompt pay laws.

AMA members can view more about these and other health care bills.

3) AMA to host regional disaster preparedness workshop
The AMA's Center for Public Health Preparedness and Disaster Response will host "Standards of care during a mass casualty event," a regional workshop sponsored by the Institute of Medicine, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. tomorrow, May 8, at AMA headquarters in Chicago.

On hand will be policymakers from state and local public health departments; local and regional public health leaders; local and state government representatives; and providers from the health care community, including relevant medical disciplines, nursing, emergency medicine, palliative care, hospice, home health and their associated employee unions, and health care and hospital administrators. The workshop will illuminate the progress and successes of efforts underway to establish local, state and regional standards of care protocols. This workshop is especially timely and relevant in light of the recent swine influenza A, or H1N1, virus infection outbreak.

4) AMA supporting physicians unjustly imprisoned in Iran
May 12 is an international day of action in support of two Iranian physicians—Kamiar Alaei, MD, and his brother Arash Alaei, MD—who have developed innovative programs for preventing and treating HIV in Iran. The Iranian government charged the physicians last year with cooperating with an enemy government, then tried and sentenced them to prison in January.

The AMA recently shared its concerns regarding these unjustly imprisoned physicians with the State Department. In a letter to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton (PDF), the AMA strongly urged "that discussions of human rights, justice and respect for the medical profession (and the Alaei brothers specifically) must be a part of any opening dialogue with Iran."

View the State Department's response (PDF).

Visit the Web site to extend your support to the Alaei brothers.

5) Keep what's rightfully yours—don't overlook unfair recoupment requests
The WellPoint/Anthem settlement prohibits the health insurer from overpayment recovery efforts initiated more than 18 months after the original payment. But WellPoint/Anthem has continued this practice, requesting the return of thousands of dollars from physician practices.

Physicians who have filed compliance disputes concerning WellPoint/Anthem overpayment recovery efforts that extend beyond the 18-month limit have received refunds from WellPoint/Anthem. If you receive an unfair recoupment request, consider filing a compliance dispute to protect your practice.

View information about the Wellpoint/Anthem settlement, including the compliance dispute process.

6) AMA resources promote coordination between physicians and patients
Informed patient choice and shared decision-making between physicians and patients are key elements to ensuring patient safety and quality of care, and the AMA offers a number of resources to help doctors work effectively with their patients—which has the potential for achieving better outcomes. These tools and resources are available as part of the AMA's Making Strides in Safety^® program, which encourages physician leadership and involvement in improving patient care and are relevant to all physician-patient encounters.

As part of the systems improvement toolkit "Accelerate together! Take the next step to improve patient safety in hospitals," the AMA developed tables that compare the differences between an adviser and partnership model and identify potential barriers to implementing the partnership model of care.

Download "Accelerate together! Take the next step to improve patient safety in hospitals" (PDF). The tables can be found on page 8.

Also available is "The patient-physician relationship: A partnership for better health care and safer outcomes" (PDF), a resource developed by the AMA in partnership with AARP that outlines physician-patient responsibilities for better health care and safer outcomes.

And the AMA created a tip sheet on communication effectiveness to help physicians improve staff communication.

7) Discounts at the AMA Bookstore: just one benefit of being an AMA member
Is your practice up to speed? Is it running as well as it could? If you think that general operations are less than perfect, an AMA resource can help lubricate the gears and tighten the screws.

AMA members receive a discount on "The Physician's Guide to Survival and Success in the Medical Practice," an invaluable reference guide that details the day-to-day operation of a medical practice and offers tools and techniques for managing personnel, finance and operations, marketing and promotion, and risk. The guide also includes up-to-date coverage of electronic health records and other technologies. A user-friendly three-ring binder format offers many forms, evaluation and assessment tools, and other aids, all of which also can be found in a CD-ROM.

AMA members can take advantage of their member discount on this and other titles offered by the AMA Bookstore.

Visit the AMA Web site to renew your AMA membership or to join the AMA and have access to valuable resources such as this.

1) House passes hate crime bill
The U.S. House of Representatives last week approved an expansion of federal "hate crime" laws. By a vote of 249–175, the House passed and sent to the Senate a bill backed by the Obama administration to broaden such laws by classifying as "hate crimes" those attacks based on a victim's sexual orientation, gender identity or mental or physical disability, according to a Reuters story.

2) Despite CDC warning, Americans' sense of urgency regarding HIV/AIDS crisis is down
A new survey by the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation finds that Americans' sense of urgency about HIV/AIDS as a national health problem has fallen dramatically, and their concern about HIV as a personal risk has also declined, even among some groups at higher risk. The survey results come less than a year after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recalculated the size of the HIV/AIDS epidemic and announced that there were 40 percent more new HIV infections each year than previously believed.

View a news release about the survey.

3) Applications being accepted for LGBT HEART scholarships
Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) students who are pursuing advanced degrees in the health profession are invited to apply for the LGBT Health, Education and Research Trust (HEART) Scholarship. Award recipients of the LGBT HEART Scholarship Fund for Health Professions, known as HEART Scholars, are selected based on a combination of need and merit-based factors.

LGBT HEART is a nationwide nonprofit organization that supports the health and well-being of the LGBT community through scholarships and research.

1) Vote for the section's next leaders
Elections for the AMA-IMG Section's 2009-2012 governing council are ongoing through May 13. AMA-IMG members whose e-mail address the AMA has on file should have been e-mailed an encrypted election ballot. If you have not received a ballot, visit the AMA Web site and register, then cast your vote.

Contact Carolyn Carter-Ellis at (312) 464-5397 or send an e-mail if you have questions.

2) Ratify IMG Section resolutions
AMA-IMG Section members are encouraged to vote in the section's resolution ratification process as part of the section's virtual congress. The final day to vote is today, May 7.

View the final AMA-IMG Section resolutions. Then send an e-mail with your votes for each resolution. Include the resolution number, your full name and your address, and note whether you "approve" or "do not approve" each final resolution.

Contact J. Mori Johnson at (312) 464-5678 or send an e-mail if you have questions.

3) Register to attend the AMA-IMG Section meeting
Mark your calendars for the AMA-IMG Section Assembly meeting, which will take place June 12–15 at the Hyatt Regency Chicago. Scheduled events include:

• The AMA-IMG Section Congress on June 12, with a keynote address by James Hallock, MD, president of the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG), who will speak about the state of the ECFMG.
• The fourth annual Desserts From Around the World reception June 13.
• The AMA-IMG caucus June 13 and June 15.
• The Busharat Ahmad, MD, Leadership Program, featuring Dr. Hallock, on June 15.

Submit your registration form before May 22 by e-mail or fax it to (312) 464-5845.

Visit the AMA-IMG Web site for the assembly meeting's full schedule and to register to attend.

Contact J. Mori Johnson at (312) 464-5678 or send an e-mail if you have questions or if you wish to give an organizational report during the AMA-IMG Section Congress.

Brought to you by the AMA Section on Medical Schools

1) AMA-SMS meeting deadlines fast approaching
Registration for the next AMA-SMS meeting, to be held June 12–14 at the Hyatt Regency Chicago, is due May 15. Hotel reservations are due to the Hyatt Regency Chicago by May 18.

This meeting will provide medical education colleagues an opportunity to network, help develop AMA policy and discuss issues affecting medical education. On June 12, the AMA-SMS will hold a joint educational session with the AMA Medical Student Section on mentoring medical students. The section will also hold a joint educational program with the Council on Medical Education on resident duty-hour limits. On June 13, the AMA-SMS will present a panel on interprofessional collaboration in health care and the implications for medical schools and graduate medical education.

Visit the AMA-SMS Web site to view more details, including registration information, about the meeting.

Send an e-mail to Jackie Drake with questions.

2) New IOM report calls for changes to prevent industry influence on patient care
The Institute of Medicine (IOM) recently published a report about the need for new voluntary and regulatory measures to strengthen protections against financial conflicts of interest in medicine without impeding patient care or the advancement of medical knowledge. The report calls on researchers, medical school faculty and private-practice physicians to forgo gifts of any amount from medical companies and to decline to publish or present material ghostwritten or otherwise controlled by industry.

View a news release about the report.

3) Medical students, physicians gather for AMA's specialty "speed dating" event
More than 75 medical students and physicians visited AMA headquarters in Chicago recently for a special event aimed at helping students choose a specialty. Attendees of the AMA's inaugural specialty speed dating event, held March 31, paired students from eight medical schools with residents and physicians from various Chicago-area hospitals and residency programs for nine 15-minute speed dating rounds. The event featured such specialties as dermatology, radiation oncology, internal medicine, pediatrics, obstetrics and gynecology, psychiatry, surgery, family medicine, anesthesiology and emergency medicine.

View a brief video of the event.

4) AMA welcomes new vice president for medical education
Susan E. Skochelak, MD, joined the AMA on May 1 as vice president of medical education. Dr. Skochelak previously served as the senior associate dean for academic affairs and a professor of family medicine at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health. She is a nationally recognized authority in medical education, having pioneered new models for medical education, including community-based and interdisciplinary education.

Actively involved in medical education research, Dr. Skochelak has been the principal investigator for more than $18 million in grant awards from the National Institutes of Health, the Department of Health and Human Services and private foundations. Dr. Skochelak is a welcome addition to the AMA.

1) Last day to register for AMA-MSS meeting
Registration is due today, May 7, to attend the AMA-MSS meeting, which will be held June 11–13 in Chicago. Visit the AMA-MSS Web site to register for the meeting and for more information about it.

The AMA has reserved blocks of rooms at a discounted rate at the Hyatt Regency Chicago and at the nearby Courtyard Marriott. Reserve a room.

If you're looking for a roommate to share the cost of a hotel room, contact other meeting attendees.

 

2) Apply for a position on the AMA-MSS Governing Council
Are you interested in a national leadership position (PDF) with the AMA-MSS? The section is accepting applications for the following positions on its governing council: vice chair, delegate, alternate delegate, at-large officer, speaker and vice speaker. The AMA-MSS Governing Council acts as the "board" for the section in that its members direct the programs and activities of the AMA-MSS on a national level. The deadline to apply is May 15.

Download an application form (Word).

3) Help the AMA-MSS select a new national service project
As part of the AMA's commitment to help medical students impact the communities in which they live and learn, every two years the AMA-MSS selects a national service project around which to focus its community service activities. The current service project, "Covering the Uninsured and Protecting Access to Care," expires this year, so all AMA medical student members are being asked via an e-mail survey to help select a new project for 2009–2011.

If you are an AMA student member, check your e-mail for the survey. If you have not received the e-mail, contact the AMA-MSS by e-mail with your name, school and e-mail address. The deadline to complete the survey is May 22.

4) Chapter of the Week: Vanderbilt University works to establish community garden
The AMA-MSS chapter at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine is collaborating with the Salvation Army and the Shade Tree Clinic, a free clinic run and staffed by medical students, to establish a community garden in the underserved area of northeast Nashville, Tenn. Through this project, the students hope to increase access to fruits and vegetables in that area, raise community awareness of healthy eating and exercise, and provide a safe outdoor exercise option in an otherwise unsafe community.

The garden is scheduled to be completed May 30, at which time a community health fair will be held to provide education about healthy food options available at the garden.

Send an e-mail to chapter President Eric Rellinger for more details about the project.

What is your chapter doing for your community? Visit AMA-MSS Web site to apply for an AMA-MSS chapter involvement grant (CIG) and pull together your own event. Apply for a CIG at least 30 days before your event.

5) Free online access to the Archives of Medicine: just one benefit of being an AMA member
Do you wish you had more published content dedicated to your specialty? If you do, consider that AMA members receive free access to the online editions of the Archives of Medicine specialty journals, periodicals dedicated to specific specialties that pull original articles, case studies and insight from across the country.

The Archives cover nine different specialties and include many online features, such as a monthly continuing medical education quiz, PowerPoint image downloads, e-mail alerts, RSS feeds, PDF downloads and toll-free interjournal linking to thousands of journals hosted by HighWire Press. Don't miss out on this rich member benefit.

Access the Archives Web site.

Visit the AMA Web site to renew your AMA membership, or to join the AMA and have access to valuable resources such as this.

6) NBME provides update regarding USMLE, influenza
For anyone concerned about swine influenza A, or H1N1, virus infection impacting their ability to safely take the United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE), the National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME) has posted information on its policies for rescheduling computer-based and clinical skills exams.

Send an e-mail to NBME liaison Kumar Vasudevan, a medical student at the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, if you have questions about the NBME.

Brought to you by the AMA Minority Affairs Consortium

1) AMA-MAC caucus set for June 12
Plan to attend the AMA-MAC caucus, which will take place from 4 to 6 p.m. June 12 at the Hyatt Regency Chicago preceding the Annual Meeting of the AMA House of Delegates. Hector Castro, MD, medical director of the Latino Health Institute of New York, will speak about the institute's mission to improve the health status of New York City's Hispanic community by overcoming cultural, language and economic barriers to quality health care.

Send an e-mail to reserve a seat at the caucus.

1) Free webinar offered to OMSS leaders and supporters
Physicians have an important role in patient safety. Because you are seen as leaders in improving efforts to make care safer, your role calls for a clear understanding of the Patient Safety and Quality Improvement Act of 2005 as well as patient safety organizations, or PSOs, created by the law. As a leader in your organized medical staff, you're invited to view a free AMA webinar about the Patient Safety and Quality Improvement Act of 2005.

Learn more about the webinar (PDF).

2) AMA-OMSS meeting fast approaching
Registration is ongoing for the 53rd annual AMA-OMSS Assembly meeting (PDF), which will be held June 11–13 at the Hyatt Regency Chicago. The deadline to register for the meeting is June 5.

Send late resolutions to James DeNuccio by 4 p.m. CST June 11.

Send an e-mail to Kathryn Tinney if you would like to volunteer to serve on the AMA-OMSS's reference committee, committee on late resolutions or tellers committee, or if you would like to serve as an advisor during the meeting.

Visit the AMA-OMSS Web site to register and make travel arrangements for the meeting.

Learn more information about AMA-OMSS committees.

3) Interim Meeting webcasts added to archives
The AMA-OMSS has posted a pair of 90-minute educational webcasts to its Web pages: "Physicians as Targets and How to Avoid Being One" and "Organized Medical Staffs and Disruptive Behavior." Both of these programs provide AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™.

Accreditation statement
The American Medical Association is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education to provide continuing medical education for physicians.

Designation statement
The American Medical Association designates this educational activity for a maximum of 1.5 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™. Physicians should only claim credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

4) AMA offers guidance in developing code of conduct
The new Joint Commission leadership standard covering code of conduct, LD.03.01.01, took effect Jan. 1, 2009. The standard's Elements of Performance requires, among other things, that hospitals have a code of conduct that defines acceptable, inappropriate and disruptive behavior, and that leaders create and implement a process for managing disruptive and inappropriate behaviors.

In response to these actions, the AMA adopted policy that calls for medical staffs to develop and implement their own code of conduct in their medical staff bylaws. Under the policy, hospitals should also have a code of conduct applicable to members of the board, management and all employees.

To assist medical staffs with implementation of a code of conduct in accordance with AMA policy and consistent with the Joint Commission leadership standard, the AMA Office of the General Counsel, in conjunction with the AMA-OMSS, drafted a model code of conduct for insertion in medical staff bylaws.

In addition, AMA members can access the "Physicians' Guide to Medical Staff Organization Bylaws" (PDF), an excellent resource for medical staffs and their bylaws committees.

1) Apply now for AMA-RFS Governing Council positions
Are you interested in becoming a leader in the largest national organization of residents and fellows? The AMA-RFS is accepting applications for the following positions on its governing council: vice chair, speaker, vice speaker, delegate, alternate delegate, and membership and outreach officer. These positions will be elected at the section's annual assembly meeting in June. Applications are due by May 14.

As the guiding force of the AMA-RFS, the governing council is responsible for directing the section's programs and activities, appointing ad hoc committees, setting assembly meeting agendas, and monitoring resolutions and reports during governing council meetings, which are held three times a year.

Visit the AMA-RFS Web site for more information about governing council duties and the annual assembly meeting.

2) Apply for position on Surgical Caucus Executive Committee
The AMA-RFS is accepting applications for the resident position on the Surgical Caucus Executive Committee. The Surgical Caucus, part of the American College of Surgeons, discusses issues and AMA House of Delegates resolutions relevant to the surgical field. The resident member participates in the surgical caucuses at the Annual and Interim meetings of the AMA House of Delegates and serves as a member of the Surgical Caucus Executive Committee. This is a two-year position appointed by the AMA-RFS Governing Council.

Visit AMA-RFS Web site to learn more about the position and to apply for it.

3) Survey shows that new doctors, teaching physicians disagree about essential medical procedures to learn
Physicians teaching at medical schools and doctors who have just completed their first year out of medical school disagree about which procedures are necessary to learn before graduating, according to a survey by researchers at Wake Forest University School of Medicine.

Participating physicians were asked to rate 31 basic clinical procedures—from throat culture to spinal tap—based on their importance in the first year after graduation from medical school. Faculty physicians rated 14 procedures as "must know," while new physicians agreed on only six of those 14 clinical procedures and placed five additional, completely different procedures in the "must know" category.

4) In the New York Times: Obama administration looking for ways to increase number of physicians
Citing officials in the Obama administration who are concerned about shortages of primary care providers throughout the country, a story published April 26 by the New York Times notes that those officials are looking for ways to increase the nation's physician supply.

According to the Times, federal officials are considering several proposals to cope with the nation's physician shortage, such as by increasing enrollment in medical schools and residency training programs. Other proposals include encouraging greater use of nurse practitioners and physician assistants as well as expanding the National Health Service Corps, which deploys doctors and nurses in rural areas and poor neighborhoods.

5) AMA advocacy: just one benefit of being an AMA member
During your residency or fellowship, is anyone looking out for you? As a member of the AMA, you can benefit from the AMA-RFS and its commitment to advocating for improved working conditions for residents and fellows. During the past several years, the AMA-RFS has worked on duty-hour enforcement, studied the increasing use of home call by residency programs and fought for the expansion of graduate medical education funding. Whether you get involved or not, your AMA membership gives the AMA-RFS the fuel it needs to fight and work on your behalf.

Join the AMA and have access to the valuable advocacy the AMA-RFS provides.

1) Annual Meeting program to discuss competency, recertification and the value of experience
The AMA-SPG is jointly sponsoring a continuing medical education (CME) program titled "Keeping Senior Physicians in Practice: Issues of Competency, Recertification and the Value of Experience," to be held from 1 to 2:30 p.m. June 13 during the Annual Meeting of the AMA House of Delegates.

John A. Fromson, MD, assistant clinical professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, will help attendees understand the value that senior physicians bring to a practice, the most common age-related issues to be aware of, and practical solutions and environmental adjustments to address those issues.

The program also is sponsored by the AMA Organized Medical Staff Section and the AMA Advisory Committee on Group Practice Physicians.

Accreditation statement
The American Medical Association is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education to provide continuing medical education for physicians.

Designation statement
The American Medical Association designates this educational activity for a maximum of 1.5 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™. Physicians should only claim credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

Brought to you by the AMA Women Physicians Congress

1) Annual AMA-WPC caucus set for June 13
Plan to attend the AMA-WPC caucus, to be held from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. June 13 at the Hyatt Regency Chicago as part of the Annual Meeting of the AMA House of Delegates.

As part of the caucus, the 2008 recipients of the Joan F. Giambalvo Memorial Scholarship will present results of their research. Sue Yom, MD, will report on the results of her study "Why do they leave? Female faculty retention and the costs of academic attrition," and Maurice Clifton, MD, will present preliminary findings from his study "Defining obstacles to the practice of medicine in rural areas by women physicians."

The caucus also will include a special celebration in recognition of the 30th anniversary of the AMA's Women in Medicine Program.

2) WPC liaisons: Annual breakfast meeting to be held June 15
The AMA-WPC Liaison Breakfast will be held from 7:30 to 8:45 a.m. June 15 at the Hyatt Regency Chicago as part of the Annual Meeting of the AMA House of Delegates. Liaisons are asked to reserve a seat at the breakfast by sending an e-mail or calling (312) 464-4743.

WPC liaisons are appointed by executive directors of state and specialty medical societies. If you are unaware if one of your organizations has a liaison or would like additional information on how you could become a liaison, contact the AMA-WPC by e-mail or by calling (312) 464-4743.

1) AMA-YPS meeting fast approaching
Young physicians, mark your calendars: This year's AMA-YPS Assembly meeting will be held June 11–13 at the Hyatt Regency Chicago.

Visit the Web site to register for the meeting.

View a draft agenda (PDF).

Send an e-mail to Jane Ascroft to submit resolutions and to volunteer for reference, AMA House of Delegates handbook review and credentials committees.

2) Apply for AMA-YPS Governing Council positions
Candidates interested in a position on the AMA-YPS Governing Council are encouraged to submit nominations by June 1. Open positions include chair-elect, who serves a three-year term as chair-elect, chair and immediate past chair; speaker, who serves a two-year term; alternate delegate, who serves a two-year term; and member at-large, who serves a two-year term.

All terms begin at the close of the Annual Meeting of the AMA House of Delegates. After June 1, nominations will only be accepted from the floor at the June 12 AMA-YPS Assembly meeting. Candidates whose nomination forms are received before June 1 will be posted on the AMA-YPS Web site.

Download a nomination form (Word).

Learn more about AMA-YPS Governing Council positions and duties.

View candidate profiles online.

3) "Red flags" rule compliance date pushed to Aug. 1
Largely as a result of AMA advocacy, physician practices now have until Aug. 1 to comply with the Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) "red flags" rule, which requires physicians to institute policies to identify, detect and respond to potential risks of identity theft.

The rule originally was to have taken effect May 1, but the FTC voted April 30 to delay the compliance date for three months. The AMA will use this time to convince the FTC and Congress that physicians are not "creditors" and therefore should not be subject to the rule.

View an FTC news release announcing the delay.

The AMA recently developed a resource (PDF), as well as a sample policy (PDF), to help physicians incorporate a simple identity theft prevention and detection program into their existing compliance and HIPAA and privacy policies.

Access other "red flags" rule-related resources from the AMA's Practice Management Center.