News in brief - Dec. 27, 2004

AMA finishes 2004 in the black - Harassment policy adopted - AMA encourages patient action on end-of-life-care issues - AMA to monitor draft plan - Patient safety advocate named to JCAHO board

AMA finishes 2004 in the black

The American Medical Association expects a $12.8 million operating profit in 2004, up significantly from the original $4.1 million operating profit projected for the year. The numbers are according to the 2005 plan and budget released at the AMA's Interim Meeting in December.

The Association says business revenue increases and lower variable costs for products it sells as well as lower selling expenses account for the difference.

Membership dues revenue in 2004 is expected to decrease 1.2% -- or $500,000 -- when compared with dues revenue for 2003. However, the $48.4 million the AMA expects from dues in 2004 exceeds the amount originally budgeted for 2004, according to the report.

In 2005, the AMA expects to see $10.3 million in operating profits and is projecting revenue from dues to go up by $100,000. New membership initiatives and better results in dues in 2003 and 2004 led the Association to budget the slight dues revenue increase in 2005, according to the budget report.

As of Sept. 16, the AMA was on target to have 247,000 members at the end of the year. That is a 2% decline from the 2003 level, but there was an increase in the number of people who were direct regular dues-paying members. The figures also make 2004 another year in which the rate of decline is less than what it was in previous years.

Harassment policy adopted

Medical institutions, practices and organizations should develop clear policy statements and procedures on sexual harassment and discrimination as well as establish a grievance procedure, members of the American Medical Association's House of Delegates said at their Interim Meeting in Atlanta in December.

The AMA recommends that policies include nine points. Among the items that should be included: a legal definition of sexual harassment, examples of sexual harassment in the workplace, an assurance of confidentiality and discretion and a provision for and an explanation of an appeals process.

The AMA also recommends that institutions, practices and organizations distribute the policy and grievance procedures in writing and ask employees to sign a copy of the policy.

To read the full report, go to the AMA Web site (www.ama-assn.org/ama1/pub/upload/mm/465/bot25i04.doc).

AMA encourages patient action on end-of-life-care issues

Noting that fewer than 30% of Americans have created legal documents on how they want to handle end-of-life care, doctors gathered at the AMA's Interim Meeting in Atlanta in December encouraged all physicians and their families to complete a durable power of attorney for health care, as well as an advance directive.

Doctors also called for the Association to work with Congress and the Dept. of Health and Human Services to educate the public about the importance of the documents. Physicians want to see medical schools educate students and residents about the issue, to have the AMA create strategies that doctors could use to encourage patients to create documents and to have the AMA and state and medical societies come together to work to correct technical problems on the issue that may be present in some states.

AMA to monitor draft plan

AMA delegates, meeting in Atlanta this month, voted to monitor the contingency plan to draft physicians and other health care professionals in an emergency. The AMA will also work with the Selective Service System to address questions and concerns regarding implementation of the plan.

An Oct. 19 article in The New York Times reported that the agency had updated its contingency plans for a draft of civilian health care workers.

In response to the article, William Winkenwerder Jr., MD, assistant secretary of defense for health affairs, said doctors should not worry about being drafted. The military health system is ready and capable of handling a national emergency, he said.

Patient safety advocate named to JCAHO board

Ilene Corina, who counsels survivors of medical errors, has been appointed as one of the six public members on the 29-person Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations board of directors.

Corina, whose 3-year-old son died after a tonsillectomy, is a co-founder of Persons United Limiting Substandards and Errors in health care (PULSE) and helped initiate Patient Safety Awareness Week. She also serves on the National Patient Safety Foundation board.

Her term begins Jan. 1, 2005, but Corina said she won't be sure about how well her goals and ideas will mesh with the rest of the board until she completes an orientation session in February.

"I suspect I will know then if I am completely out of line on my ideas or if they will be welcome at the table," Corina said. "Until then, I am just studying their Web site and doing a lot of observing and hoping that I will be in a position to actually make a huge difference."