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In this Issue:
- Governor's Message
- National ACP Meeting
- Advocacy
- Vaccine Issues
- COVID Resources
- Chapter Committees
- Communication/Member Engagement/Social Media
- Chapter Awards
- Tennessee Chapter Meeting
- Strategic Plan
- Wellness
Tracey E. Doering, MD, FACP, ACP Governor
Governor's Message
Dear Colleagues,
This will likely be my last Governor's newsletter before Dr. Catherine Womack becomes Governor at the end of this year's national meeting. I have been honored to serve and it has enriched my professional career. Thanks for all of your support and for all you do for your patients and community. We are thankfully beginning to see the light at the end of the long pandemic tunnel! I am truly honored to be part of the Tennessee Chapter of the ACP and appreciate your membership and hope you will take advantage of any opportunities that interest you. Contact me anytime! Contact me at tracey.doering@gmail.com or cell 615-347-9643.
National ACP Meeting
Please give serious consideration for the 2021 Internal Medicine Meeting, which will be held virtually on April 29-May 1. You can read full details and register online here.
I am proud to announce we have the following students and residents presenting at the national virtual abstract competition.
Nicholas Campbell, UT Chattanooga IM residency
Brian Cartwirght, medical student ETSU
Benjamin Emery, UT Chattanooga IM residency
Christine Joyce, medical student UTHSC
Titilope Olanipekun, Early Career Physicians
Akesh Thomas, ETSU IM residency
Advocacy
We continue to be actively involved in the issue of independent practice for NPs. There is a statewide coalition, with members of numerous societies, dealing with this issue. It is anticipated the NPs will bring legislation forward on their behalf this year. We are working on a legislative action plan led by Dr. Bob Vegors. If any of you are interested in being on the Health and Pubic Policy Committee, please let me know.
WE WOULD LIKE ALL OF OUR MEMBERSHIP TO BE PART OF THE ADVOCATES FOR INTERNAL MEDICINE NETWORK! It is extremely easy to register. Increasing the percentage of our membership in this network is part of our strategic plan this year, so please click and enroll, and be part of supporting Internal medicine!
Vaccine Issues
National ACP wants to support all healthcare workers to be sure that vaccines are obtained for you. There have been some issues obtaining vaccines for small independent practices. Please let me know if you are having issues in that regard. National ACP wants to be made aware of all issues. I hope everyone is or has gotten vaccinated and can rally their patients and staff to do the same!!
COVID Resources
Thankfully, numbers are trending down in Tennessee and across the nation. ACP continues to update their COVID resource website almost daily with information as it arises. It is a spectacular resource.
Chapter Committees
As I mentioned in my last newsletter, we are in the process of forming committees with representation from all areas of the state (see list of committees below). If you are interested, please let me know. Governor-elect, Dr. Catherine Womack really wants to engage members and increase activity of the chapter in all venues.
Finance
Health and Public Policy
Membership
Nominations/Awards
Early Career Physicians
Program Planning Committee
Wellness
Student Committee
Resident/Fellow Committee
Social Media
Communication/Member Engagement/Social Media
We want to communicate in every way that will work for you! We currently have accounts on Facebook and Twitter. We would like to post news about any of our members, students, and residents! Please send such information to me or Renee Arnott so we can get that to our social media committee to be posted.
Tennessee Chapter Twitter account
Tennessee Chapter Facebook page
Tennessee Chapter website
Chapter Awards
In addition to our local awards, we would like to nominate members for national awards. Please use this link for the awards list and descriptions.
Tennessee Chapter Meeting
We are planning an in-person meeting for the fall on October 22-23 at the Franklin Marriott. We do believe that the majority of physicians will be vaccinated at that point, and that we can follow guidelines that are in place at that time. More information and registration will be posted on the chapter website in the summer. Please save the date and plan to attend!
Strategic Plan
Our council met virtually to create a strategic plan in preparation for Dr. Womack's term as Governor. We reviewed all of the domains in the Chapter Excellence Award, which encompasses key areas of chapter strength and development to address the needs of the membership, and our goal is to attempt to achieve the gold criteria in most or all of those areas to improve and enhance the effectiveness of the chapter across the state. The domains are listed below, and improving in all these areas will be a substantial accomplishment!
Advocacy
Communication and Member Engagement
Education
Financial
Infrastructure
Membership
Professional Home
Some of the goals include more educational and supportive meetings/activities for our Early Career Physicians, residents, and students, as they are the future of the organization. If you have ideas or suggestions, please feel free to email me to discuss.
Wellness
Drs. Mukta Panda, Benjamin Maddox and our newest leader here, Dr. Desiree Burroughs-Ray, are leading periodic “Conversations and Connection” virtual meetings that have been spectacular. I encourage you to zoom in on one and see what you think.
Tennessee Medical Foundation offers a professional screening questionnaire. You can visit their website for information. Please note that we are making this info available for your information and individual assessment of interest in participating. ACP Tennessee Chapter is not suggesting that you should participate. Participation would be completely voluntary and the ACP Tennessee Chapter will not know whether you do or do not participate.
Your next newsletter will be in the spring or summer and come from our new Governor, Dr. Catherine Womack. Her enthusiasm is incredible, and I see a very bright future for our chapter under her leadership!
Thanks again for the opportunity to serve, and for all you do!
Warmest regards,
Tracey E. Doering, MD, FACP
Governor, ACP Tennessee Chapter
tracey.doering@gmail.com