-
In this Issue:
- From the Governor
- Recognizing our members: From Our Awards Committee Chair
- From Our Wellbeing Committee
- The Provider Clinical Support System (PCSS) and Opioid Response Network (ORN)
Priya Radhakrishnan, MD, FACP, ACP Governor
From the Governor
Dear ACP members!
September is a very important month for us at ACP Arizona! September sees the launch of ACP's discussion on Physician Suicide.
Join the conversation as ACP hosts a #NPSAday discussion on physician suicide, next week (Sept. 9-12). Help us spread awareness and strengthen our community by logging on to remember loved ones, share stories, and offer best practices on our Arizona Social Medical Sites: Twitter and Facebook.
Join ACP's discussion on National Physician Suicide Awareness (NPSA) for our members on the well-being and professional satisfaction forum from September 9-12, 2019. Login to ACP Online and join the conversation. Please share the forum link with other ACP members in your communities to remember loved ones, share stories and best practices, and amplify awareness to strengthen communities and prevent this healthcare crisis from spreading. Well-being and Professional Fulfillment Task Force members and other experts in the field will facilitate and add to the discussion.
Our chapter has petitioned the Arizona Medical Board to remove language that prevents self-care. Please join us in writing to the medical board to consider this petition. Click here to read the letter sent by our advocacy committee.
Send us your stories and share your successes in combating the burnout epidemic. We will publish them every month.
The Countdown begins!
September is also the month that leads up to our Annual Meeting. The Chapter planning committee is planning an extraordinary meeting with multiple tracks and something for each member. Dr. Bijin Thajudeen, our wonderful meeting chair, has invited wonderful speakers. We are planning the very first Ignite session at our chapter and as always great posters and oral vignettes. We are recruiting for judges. Send us an email if you would like to volunteer to become a judge.
Our Arizona chapter has grown by 2% this last year! One advantage of membership is the ability to recognize the wonderful work being done by the members of the chapter. Watch out for the announcements for awards! Please nominate chapter members – in education, volunteerism, leadership, and research: to name a few!
We have outstanding members who have made an enormous impact on our profession and our communities.
Recognizing our members: From Our Awards Committee Chair
Dr. Cheryl O’Malley
“The ACP has a strong tradition of recognizing excellence among members. This is in the form of the designation of “fellow”/FACP as well as through our awards program. We are in the final stages of nomination and selection of this year's awards so please take a moment to nominate one of your peers, mentors, colleagues or trainees for these important awards. It only takes a moment and the impact of the recognition lasts a lifetime.”
From Our Wellbeing Committee
Dr. Chelsea Thomsen
National Physician Suicide Awareness day is September 17th, 2019.
There are many risk factors contributing to physician suicide, one of them is occupational burnout.
Occupational burnout is now reported at alarming rates among physicians, twice that of the general US working population; with even higher rates among resident physicians, and females more likely to suffer from it compared to males. Burnout can happen to any physician at any time, it knows no socioeconomic status, gender or race. What drives it may be unique, but the effect has is similar: performance and quality of life will suffer. But it need not be so.
The American College of Physicians is working locally and nationwide to advocate and bring a voice to this topic. By giving a name and a face to the epidemic of physician burnout, we can work together to find ways to combat it and even prevent its occurrence.
Share in your stories about burnout and successes in its mitigation with us on Twitter at #NPSAday @ArizonaACP
Dr. Thomsen graduated medical school at the University of Arizona and completed her residency at The Mayor Clinic in Scottsdale, Arizona. She currently works in the Internal Medicine Academic Clinic. She also precepts the residents in the ambulatory setting. Her clinical interest are wellness, resiliency, resident physician education, international volunteering, and public health.
The Provider Clinical Support System (PCSS) and Opioid Response Network (ORN)
The American College of Physicians (ACP) Center for Quality has partnered with the American Academy of Addiction Psychiatry (AAAP) and a coalition of national professional organizations on two SAMHSA-funded initiatives, the Provider Clinical Support System (PCSS)1 and Opioid Response Network (ORN)2 programs to combat the opioid crisis. As a part of these programs, ACP is providing a number of opportunities to members to participate in the Opioid Response Network and access resources to support improved treatment and prevention of substance use disorder and chronic pain management. Please see below for more information about these resources opportunities.
- Funding for this initiative was made possible (in part) by grant no. 5U79TI026556 from SAMHSA. The views expressed in written conference materials or publications and by speakers and moderators do not necessarily reflect the official policies of the Department of Health and Human Services, nor does mention of trade names, commercial practices, or organizations imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.
- Funding for this initiative was made possible (in part) by grant no. 6H79TI080816 from SAMHSA. The views expressed in written conference materials or publications and by speakers and moderators do not necessarily reflect the official policies of the Department of Health and Human Services; nor does mention of trade names, commercial practices, or organizations imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.
Become a Technical Assistance Consultant
ACP is assisting AAAP with the recruitment of physicians, who are waivered prescribers with a minimum of two years of experience, to apply to become Technical Assistant (TA) consultants. TA Consultants will be paid $100/hour for up to 10 hours per week. More information about the ORN program is available online at www.opioidresponsenetwork.org.
If you are interested in applying to become a TA consultant, please complete this brief survey: http://www.cvent.com/d/btqyk0. Or if you would like more information about the program, please contact Julia Thayer, Associate, QI. jthayer@acponline.org
Request Technical Assistance Support
Members who are seeking technical assistance to treat or prevent substance use disorders are encouraged to visit the Opioid Response Network website and submit a request. https://opioidresponsenetwork.org/SubmitTARequest.aspx A member of the Opioid Response Network will contact you in one business day.
ACP Resources
The ACP Advance Chronic Pain program aims to spread quality improvement strategies that improve primary care chronic pain management, safe opioid prescribing practices, and substance use disorder prevention, treatment, and recovery. Resources including access to the ACP Advance Quality Improvement Curriculum, educational videos, webinars, patient education materials, and links to the Provider Clinical Support System and Opioid Response Network resources.