June 2013

• New SCMA vision: Lead Sonoma County into better health

• Still time to register for June 4 Medi-Cal rally in Sacramento

• Dr. Rob Nied named SCMA president-elect

• Presentation on high cost of drugs set for June 13 at Sutter Santa Rosa

• Resolutions needed for CMA House of Delegates by June 30

• Nominations needed for Physician Leader award

• SCMA hosts two social events during May

• Get your 2013 Sonoma County Physician Directory!

• Top stories from CMA Alert

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The SCMA board of directors has approved a new five-year strategic plan whose central vision is to lead Sonoma County into better health. The plan, based on the results of a member survey distributed earlier this year as well as comments from local medical CEOs, encompasses a revised mission statement for the medical association, along with statements of SCMA’s vision, values and strategies.

The revised mission of SCMA is “To enhance the health of our communities and promote the practice of medicine by advocating for quality, ethical healthcare, strong physician-patient relationships, and for personal and professional well-being for physicians.” The revision brings more detail and specificity to the previous mission, which was “To support physicians and their efforts to enhance the health of the community.”

Coupled with this revised mission statement is SCMA’s new vision of leading Sonoma County into better health, along with five core values: advocacy, collaboration, integrity, quality and well-being. All those factors support SCMA’s five main strategies for the coming years, described below:

Lead change in health care. Support implementation of the Affordable Care Act, advance legislative advocacy, and increase access to needed care and services.

Promote a healthy community. Reduce obesity and improve oral health.

Advocate for physician practice viability and physician wellness. Identify and inform physicians of practice support services and promote physician well-being resources.

Increase membership 5% each year. Promote awareness of membership value, create membership retention and recruitment campaigns, and encourage physicians to practice in Sonoma County.

Strengthen SCMA organization effectiveness and efficiency. Develop physician leadership and refine SCMA governance.

More details on the new strategic plan will be distributed to local physicians in the coming months.

More than 9,000 physicians and other medical professionals statewide have already registered for the June 4 “We Are Medi-Cal” rally in Sacramento, expected to be the largest-ever healthcare demonstration at the State Capitol. Sponsored by the “We Care for California” coalition of healthcare providers, including SCMA, the rally will promote awareness of the threat that looming Medi-Cal cuts pose to healthcare access, especially in rural and underserved communities.

The goal of 10,000 attendees is easily within reach, and all local healthcare workers are urged to register by visiting www.wecareforca.org. Buses to the rally will be leaving from the Kaiser and Sutter medical centers in Santa Rosa between 9 and 10 in the morning on Tuesday, June 4, returning late in the afternoon. The rally is scheduled to run from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Box lunches and water will be provided at no cost. Be sure to wear your white coat!

If you can’t spend all day in Sacramento, you can drive there on your own and spend just an hour or two, but you should still register at www.wecareforca.org.

For more details, see the attached flyer.

June 4 Medi-Cal rally flyer

The results of the recent SCMA election have been tabulated, and Dr. Rob Nied, a family and sports medicine physician at Kaiser Santa Rosa, has been named SCMA president-elect. He will serve in that post for one year and then become SCMA president in July 2014. The current president-elect, Petaluma gastroenterologist Dr. Stephen Steady, will become president next month.

Other physicians winning SCMA board posts in the recent election include Drs. Francesca Manfredi (treasurer), Regina Sullivan (secretary), Richard Powers (West County district) and Jan Sonander and Jeff Sugarman (Santa Rosa district). For a complete list of the board of directors, visit www.scma.org/about.

In addition, three physicians--Drs. Dan Lightfoot, Richard Powers and Jeff Sugarman--were elected as CMA delegates, and four were elected as alternate delegates: Drs. Francesca Manfredi, Rob Nied, Stephen Steady and Regina Sullivan.

For more information, contact Cynthia Melody at cmelody@scma.org or 707-525-4375.

Dr. Don Light, an internationally recognized expert on the pharmaceutical industry, is the featured speaker at “Bitter Pill: The High Cost of American Drugs,” an educational presentation scheduled for 6 to 8 p.m. on Thursday, June 13, in the Vesalius Room at Sutter Medical Center of Santa Rosa. Dr. Light will discuss the financial and ethical costs of the pharmaceutical industry and its role in healthcare policy. A panel discussion and question-and-answer session will follow the main presentation.

Dr. Light, a professor of comparative health policy at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, is the author of “The Risks of Prescription Drugs,” published in 2011.

The event, which is sponsored by the Sonoma Chapter of the Physicians for a National Health Plan, is free and open to the public.

June 13 Don Light flyer

Resolutions for the CMA District 10 caucus are due by June 30. The caucus is the first stop on the way to the CMA House of Delegates, which meets this fall to consider resolutions from around the state. Submitting resolutions to the House of Delegates is the most direct way for members to influence CMA’s policies and activities, including its advocacy agenda. Resolutions can address virtually any medical practice or health-related topic, or any aspect of the policies and activities of organized medicine.

To submit a resolution, contact Cynthia Melody at cynthia@scma.org or 525-4375.

The Northern California Center for Well-Being is soliciting nominations for its annual “physician leader” award, to be presented at the annual Celebration of Dreams event in September. The award recognizes physicians who have made a difference in community well-being by promoting healthy lifestyles.

Nominations are due June 12. To submit a nomination, complete the attached form and fax or email to the Center for Well-Being. For questions, call 575-6043.

Physician Leader nomination form

May was a busy month for SCMA social events. On May 9, more than 140 local doctors and guests attended the annual SCMA Wine & Cheese Reception at the Francis Ford Coppola Winery in Geyserville. Guests of honor included CMA President Dr. Paul Phinney and CMA board member Dr. Peter Bretan. Then on May 22, nearly all the medical students doing clinical rotations at Kaiser Santa Rosa attended SCMA’s Medical Student Appreciation Social, held at the Third Street Aleworks in downtown Santa Rosa.

One of the many benefits of SCMA membership is a free copy of the annual Sonoma County Physician Directory. Extra copies are a hot commodity, however, and right now is the best time to buy yours before they’re all gone.

The directory costs $30 for SCMA members or $40 for nonmember physicians, health care facilities and the general public. To order by phone with a credit card, contact Rachel Pandolfi at 707-525-4375 or rachel@scma.org. You can also purchase online at www.scma.org/directory, or you can fax or mail the order form below.

Sonoma County Physician Directory order form

Here are the top stories from the latest CMA Alert, the California Medical Association’s biweekly email newsletter. For a free subscription, visit www.cmanet.org/cma-alert.

• New TRICARE contract might create gap in medical malpractice coverage

• Ninth circuit denies request to rehear Medi-Cal rate cut case

• CMA joins coalition to oppose scope-of-practice bills

• Covered California unveils qualified health plans, expected premiums

• Congress making progress on SGR repeal

The Advanced Surgery Institute--located at 1739 Fourth St. in Santa Rosa--is holding an open house from 5:30 to 7 p.m. on Wednesday, June 19. All local physicians are invited to attend the event, which will feature guided tours of the ambulatory surgery center’s operating rooms, along with appetizers and refreshments. To RSVP, contact Brooke Rohrer at 707-528-6331 or brohrer@advancedsurgeryinstitute.com.

Breast tomosynthesis is the latest offering at the Sutter Pacific Medical Foundation Breast Center in Santa Rosa. This new technology employs 3D mammography to help identify abnormalities with more accuracy than traditional mammography. Tomosynthesis is especially helpful for women with dense breast tissue. “The technology helps us determine more effectively whether something is worrisome or a result of overlapping tissue,” said Dr. Arnold Honick, medical director of the Breast Center. He also noted that the technology allows radiologists to detect breast cancer at an earlier stage.

Sonoma Valley Hospital is the latest North Bay hospital to report a data breach on its website. The hospital said that an employee mistakenly uploaded medical information on 1,350 surgical patients to the website on Feb. 14. The information included the patients’ and surgeons’ names, but not any Social Security numbers, licenses or financial details. All the information was removed in April, after the hospital learned about the breach. Last year, a similar breach affected more than 10,000 patients at Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital and Napa’s Queen of the Valley Hospital.

The following CMA webinars are scheduled for June. Webinars begin at 12:15 p.m. and run until 1:15 or later. To register, visit www.cmanet.org. Seminars are free for CMA members and their staff; cost for nonmembers is $99 per person.

• Updating your partnership and shareholder agreements (June 5)

• Paid family leave: A valuable safety net (June 12)

• What to expect from a Medi-Cal audit (June 19)

• Meaningful use: What you need to know (June 26)

A conference on Integrating Mind-Body Medicine into Clinical Practice will be held in San Francisco Oct. 5-9. Sponsored by the Center for Mind-Body Medicine, the conference offers a maximum of 31 Category 1 credits. The focus is on medical techniques to address stress, anxiety, trauma, insomnia and chronic illness. To register, visit www.cmbm.org.

The 21st annual Latino Health Forum runs from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 10, at the Flamingo Conference Resort in Santa Rosa. This year’s forum focuses on immigration and healthcare reform and features keynote speakers and morning and afternoon workshops. All local physicians, medical professionals and students interested in medical careers are invited to attend. Cost is just $80 if paid before Sept. 16. Physicians are encouraged to sponsor a student registration for $100. To register, or to sponsor a student registration, visit www.LatinoHealthForum.org.

SCMA members can get registration discounts for the Napa Primary Care Conference: Caring for the Active and Athletic Patient, to be held at the Napa Valley Marriott from Nov. 6 to 10. The conference is designed for physicians and medical professionals who care for active and athletic patients or who themselves lead such a lifestyle. Topics include common medical and musculoskeletal problems, healthy lifestyles and personal wellness. The conference offers up to 16 hours of CME. To register, visit the conference website.

Local physicians are encouraged to refer their patients to self-care classes at the Northern California Center for Well-Being in Santa Rosa. The latest schedule, available at www.norcalwellbeing.org/schedule, includes classes on cardiac rehabilitation, diabetes meal planning, strength training, smoking cessation and many other self-care topics.

Family physicians needed

Family medicine positions available with Annadel Medical Group in Sonoma County. Contact James.DeVore@stjoe.org.

Medical office space for lease, Santa Rosa

Newly remodeled medical office with exam rooms available for clinician to see patients. Located on N. Dutton Ave. near West College. Parking, reception area, utilities included. For details, visit www.facebook.com/SantaRosaSportsAndFamilyMedicine. Contact Len at 707-529-8081 or len@srsportsmed.com.

Urodynamic monitor for sale

Urodynamic monitor--$2900. Like new. Bard 4-channel urodynamic monitor with extra supplies. I left private practice and joined a large group and no longer need this monitor. It is in great condition and was hardly used. I am in the Santa Rosa area but can arrange delivery to other Bay Area locations. Contact Janet at 650-814-7155 or janetpulskamp@comcast.net.

SCMA members get free classifieds!

SCMA members can place free classified ads in News Briefs or Sonoma Medicine. Cost for nonmember physicians and the general public is $1 per word. To place a classified ad, contact Linda McLaughlin at Linda@scma.org or 707-525-4359.

Larry Gambrell, DO, Otolaryngology*, Integrative Medicine, 1144 Sonoma Ave. #101, Santa Rosa 95405, Oklahoma State Univ 2001

Susan Milam Miller, MD, Child & Adolescent Psychiatry*, 725 Farmers Ln. #16, Santa Rosa 95405, Albert Einstein Coll Med 2001

* = board certified; italics = special medical interest

The Sonoma County Medical Association, a 501(c)(6) nonprofit association, supports local physicians and their efforts to enhance the health of the community. Founded in 1858, SCMA is affiliated with the California Medical Association and the American Medical Association.

© 2013 SCMA, 2901 Cleveland Ave. #202, Santa Rosa, CA 95403