MMS NEWS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS
Do you treat male patients? In half a day, get set up for their future
How does men’s age or marijuana use affect their reproductive potential? Does steroid use affect cardiac health long-term? What’s the best way to broach the topic of gun safety? The 2017 Men’s Health Symposium will set you up to answer your patients’ questions and confidently discuss sensitive topics. At The Many Facets of Men’s Health: Clinical Conversations Impacting Your Patients, our speakers will update you on research advances and legislative policy shifts affecting four key health issues: male fertility, marijuana use, gun violence and safety, and nutrition and physical conditioning. Check out the full agenda and our speakers’ bios. The symposium takes place at MMS Headquarters, Waltham, on June 15, 2017; registration and CME designation. Watch Theodore Macnow, MD, pediatric emergency medicine physician, outline what this symposium can do for you (video).
Find out how to address your patients’ social needs—and help Health Leads help you do it better
This
upcoming event combines a workshop and a focus group. Do you worry
about the social factors affecting your patients' health? Do you or your
staff feel overwhelmed with patient concerns related to food
insecurity, transportation, housing, and prescription assistance?
Providers know that much of health is driven by life outside medical
care. We also know that unmet social needs contribute to high health
care costs and high utilization rates. At this Physician Practices Workshop and Focus Group,
experts from Health Leads, a nonprofit organization developing
interventions that link patients to community-based resources, will
cover how to screen patients for social needs, integrate those needs
into your existing clinical workflow, enable practice staff to provide
resource support, and create an inventory of resources. They will ask
for your input on relevant content and tools. The event will be held at
6:00-8:00 p.m., June 28, 2017, at the MMS headquarters in Waltham. All
participants will receive dinner and a $100 gift card, as well as
resources including a social needs screening toolkit. Please contact
Rich Porcelli at rporcelli@healthleadsusa.org for more information and to secure your spot.
Integrate behavioral health and primary care with the Health Policy Commission: PCMH PRIME webinar
Get
introduced to the PCMH PRIME certification program in this upcoming
webinar. PCMH PRIME was developed by the Massachusetts Health Policy
Commission (HPC) in collaboration with NCQA. PCMH PRIME identifies
criteria that are key to integrating behavioral health care into primary
care, and certifies NCQA PCMH-recognized practices that meet a majority
of these criteria. In this webinar, NCQA faculty will review the
program criteria, documentation requirements, and certification process
for practices applying for PCMH PRIME Certification before September 30,
2017 (more information
on key dates). This webinar is open to health care professionals,
decision makers, and consultants in Massachusetts. It will be held June
20, 2017, 9:00-10:30 a.m.; registration.
Registration entitles registrants to one computer and one telephone
connection. (Future webinars will address the program standards and
application process for practices applying to PCMH PRIME after September
30, 2017; more information.)
Honors, accolades, appointments, publications? Share your news in Vital Signs
Vital Signs, the monthly print and online newsletter of the MMS, has two new columns—and we need you to fill them. Members on the Move lists your professional news, such as joining a new hospital, opening a practice, or a recent promotion. Honors and Accolades
is where we share your achievements: board appointments, speaking
engagements, community outreach, or published works. We are currently
seeking submissions for the September issue of Vital Signs.
Please include your full name and title, medical school with graduation
year, residency institution, hospital affiliation, recent update, and a
high-resolution headshot. Send submissions to vitalsigns@mms.org by July 10, 2017 (for the September issue).
Physician Focus from MMS: A layperson's guide to concussion and traumatic brain injury
What's
going on in a concussion? How could it affect us? What should we do
about it? In recent years, physicians and scientists have learned a lot
about concussion, and our approaches to treatment have changed. The
latest 30-minute episode of Physician Focus, a
public information campaign, outlines what we all need to know to take
care of ourselves or others after a brain-related trauma. The episode
features a pediatric emergency physician, a brain injury survivior, and a
patient advocate, and is hosted by Bruce Karlin, M.D. Physician Focus
is produced by the MMS in partnership with Hopkinton's community access
TV station. Please share this resource with your patients. If you are
interested in hosting or being featured on a future episode relating to
your specialist topic, email physicianfocus@mms.org.
Physician’s Insurance Agency of Massachusetts gets a new president
Thomas
Bryant, ARM, will become President of the Physicians Insurance Agency
of Massachusetts (PIAM) on June 3, 2017. Tom has served as PIAM’s
Director of Business Development for the last six years. He has been in
the insurance industry for almost 15 years, after transitioning out of a
law enforcement career. He is a Licensed Property and Casualty Producer
in all New England states, and has an in-depth knowledge of PIAM’s
operations and lines of business. Tom will succeed Kathy
Finnerty-Schroth, who is retiring after 20 years with the organization.
PIAM, the insurance agency of the Massachusetts Medical Society, is a
great resource for quality, cost-effective insurance solutions,
especially in the area of medical malpractice. Connect with a PIAM agent
at 781-434-7525 or at piam@mms.org.
Reminders! Stuff you should click on
Share your expertise with medical students—but first, join us for lunch
The Boston University School
of Medicine Integrated Problems (IP) course depends on volunteer
physicians to facilitate the small group problem-based learning sessions
for second-year medical students. Your medical experience and expertise
will be invaluable in developing the students’ clinical reasoning
skills. The course runs between September and November, 2017. Join us
for lunch to learn more on June 15, 2017; information and registration. If you can only call-in for the presentation, email ckoh@mms.org.
Last call! Become a more effective leader and conflict manager
This
interactive, experiential two-day program is for residents and
physicians in clinical practice, administration, and leadership. Managing Workplace Conflict: Improving Leadership and Personal Effectiveness
is designed to help you establish relationships, teams, and work
environments in which you and your colleagues can deliver your best
care. You will learn to communicate more effectively, apply negotiation
and conflict resolution skills with peers and leaders, implement
appropriate changes in personal and organizational practices, exhibit
appropriate boundaries, and more. The program provides 17 hours of
category 1 risk management CME and is co-sponsored by Physician Health
Services and the Massachusetts Medical Society. It will be held on June
8-9, 2017 at MMS Headquarters, Waltham: information and registration.
MMS membership benefits
Graduating medical students: Continue your free MMS membership
If
you are staying in Massachusetts, talk with your residents-fellows
residency program director about free MMS membership. Alternatively, ask
your program coordinator to submit a 2017 program roster to activate
the MMS benefits for you and your colleagues.
Beginning
your training out of state? Maintain your membership through December
2018 at no cost. Watch your email inbox for more information.
Questions? Email groups@massmed.org or call (800) 322-2303, ext.7748.
Residents & fellows completing training in June 2017: Access your free MMS membership
- The MMS offers free membership for your first year in practice. Maintain benefits like your New England Journal of Medicine subscription whether or not you’re staying in MA. For more information, contact mmsprocessing@mms.org or 800-322-2303 ext. 7495.
- Supplementing
training with a fellowship? Your new program coordinator can submit a
2017–18 roster to provide membership for you and your program
colleagues. Watch your email inbox for details.
- For more information, contact groups@mms.org or 800-322-2303 ext. 7748.
Educational programs and event
Unless otherwise noted, all events are held at the MMS Headquarters, 860 Winter St., Waltham, MA. View our full calendar of upcoming live CME activities.
Managing Workplace Conflict: Improving Leadership & Personal Effectiveness
Thursday, June 8, 2017, 8:00 a.m.–6:00 p.m., June 9, 2017, 8:00 a.m-12:45 p.m.
15th Annual Symposium on Men’s Health – The Many Facets of Men’s Health: Clinical Conversations Impacting Your Patients
Thursday, June 15, 2017, 8:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m.
Medical Care of Adults with Intellectual/Developmental Disabilities – Live Webinar
Friday, June 16, 2017, 12:00 p.m.–1:00 p.m.
Norfolk County Safe Prescribing and Dispensing Conferences
Thursday, September 14, 2017, 8:00 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
The above activities have been approved for AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™
Featured Online CME Activities – Risk Management Credit
The above activities have been approved for AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™
See our full listing of risk management online CME activities.
This week in health care
Sign up for daily roundups of health news affecting Massachusetts.
Boston hospitals working to save NIH funding in Trump era
Mayor
Martin Walsh convened a roundtable discussion on Thursday at
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, bringing together executives from every
top hospital in Boston and a number of Massachusetts senators and
representatives to discuss ways to prevent a potential 18 percent cut to National Institutes of Health funding.
What does Aetna want from HQ relocation?
Aetna’s statement says its goal for its headquarters relocation
is “broadening our access to innovation and the talent that will fill
knowledge economy-type positions.” And to do that, it's going after
incentives.
Berkshire Medical Center nurses reject ‘best and final’ contract offer
Of the 495 Massachusetts Nurses Association members eligible to vote on the contract offer, 405 (82 percent) voted against it, according to a union spokesman.
Boncore Amendment targets opioids crisis
State
Senator Joe Boncore said his amendment to the Senate budget would
direct DPH to partner with law enforcement and medical professionals to
study the safety and health impacts of supervised injection facilities, in line with MMS recommendations.
Regulating pot In Massachusetts: Whose job is it anyway?
Since the referendum passed, lawmakers on Beacon Hill are working through the kinks of regulating the business
of selling and taxing the marijuana industry. Some argue they are
dragging their feet on the issue by delaying its implementation.
Westborough’s eClinicalWorks to pay $155M settlement to feds
The
U.S. Department of Justice claimed that the company — one of the
nation's largest vendors of electronic health records software — had
falsely obtained certification that its technology met federal
guidelines, allegedly faking the abilities of its system just to comply with testing requirements.
Tufts nurses move closer to strike
A nurses' strike
and subsequent four-day lockout is looking imminent at Tufts Medical
Center, after the nurses and hospital administrators failed to reach an
agreement during the final scheduled negotiating session.
The addict brokers: Middlemen profit from desperate patients
Patient brokers can earn tens of thousands of dollars a year by wooing vulnerable addicts
for treatment centers that often provide few services and sometimes are
run by disreputable operators with no training or expertise in drug
treatment, according to Florida law enforcement officials and two
individuals who worked as brokers in Massachusetts.
Are young adults safer under Trumpcare? Don’t count on it, says Boston Children’s study
The
Republican plan to replace the Affordable Care Act would keep the
popular provision that allows young adults to stay on their parents'
insurance until age 26. But a study by Boston Children's Hospital finds
that other changes proposed would reduce the number of people in that age group who get health insurance regardless.
How a merger saved Athol Hospital and made Heywood stronger
At the time of the merger, Athol had four days of cash on hand and one inpatient bed filled. Since then, Athol has swung to profitability, with an operating margin holding at about 3 percent and volume has increased every year, with an average daily census of 13.
