WORD TO THE WISE
Newsletter: April 2019 - Volume 19, No. 4
In this issue:
  • President's corner: Join us for a wellness CME event May 23
  • Update from your CMS BOD rep: Legislative session heats up
  • Report from a successful PA/NP event
  • Wellness corner: AMA STEPS Forward
  • Upcoming PCMS events: PCMS Directory photos and upcoming events
  • Other Events: MHAP lunch; Parkview pain management symposium; emerging strategies for the opioid crisis; CMS convening on opioids; Take Back Day; Pueblo Chamber legislative breakfast; workshop on Mediterranean diet; workshop on growing and cooking with herbs
  • News: PCMS CEO featured on TV segment on physician burnout; record-setting Match Day; MIPS and QPP
  • News from CMS: Professional review fight appears imminent
  • News from AMA: More on physician wellness
PRESIDENT'S CORNER  
Don’t tune out on burnout; engage with colleagues at May 23 CME event
PCMS will hold an event the evening of May 23 focusing on physician wellness and burnout. I hope you will watch your email for more information and make plans to join us, no matter your current state of practice. Consider this statistic: Physicians spend, on average, 30 percent of their time documenting progress notes. Is this you? A colleague or friend? A consultant who shadowed me for an entire shift revealed that I spent 51 percent of my time in the chart. Emergency medicine doctors really do spend half their time documenting. Read more here.
UPDATE FROM YOUR CMS BOD REP  
Colorado legislative session heats up
With less than a month left in the 2019 Colorado legislative session, bill activity under the dome is speeding up and will reach a furious pace before sine die on May 3. The physician volunteers who comprise the Council on Legislation – including PCMS representative Terry Lakin, DO, MPH – as well as the CMS Board of Directors track legislation that affects Colorado physicians and our patients. Click here to read about the top three bills for physicians to watch. 
Crowd-pleasing event for PAs and NPs
Physician assistants and nurse practitioners hold important positions in our health care industry. Pueblo County Medical Society acknowledged this by hosting a complimentary event for PAs and NPs on Wednesday, April 3, at Brues Alehouse Brewing Company. The CME event was well attended with 26 PAs and NPs present.

Board of Directors’ Secretary Dr. Marcel Junqueira presented an interactive, educational message on how to manage sleep apnea patients with OSA on PAP therapy. Read more here.
Wellness corner: AMA's STEPS Forward
The American Medical Association Ed Hub™ offers CME on professional well-being using the STEPS Forward™ open-access platform that offers innovative strategies that allow physicians and their staff to thrive in the new health care environment. These toolkits can help you prevent physician burnout, create the organizational foundation for joy in medicine, create a strong team culture and improve practice efficiency. Click here to access the AMA’s STEPS Forward modules.
PCMS EVENTS
TONIGHT, April 9: 2020 PCMS Directory photo sessions

Please stop by to get your photo taken tonight, April 9 by Severino Martinez of So Cold Design & Photograph. Your new professional photo will replace any existing photo and be published in our 2020 Physician Directory. Severino Martinez of So Cold Design & Photography will set up his back drop, either black, white or blue, outside of the door of the Sangre de Cristo Arts and Conference Center during Parkview’s General Medical Staff Meeting. All photos will be utilized only for the PCMS Member Directory.
Save the date for upcoming PCMS events in 2019
Details coming soon!

  • CME event: Physician Wellness/Burnout - May 23, 6 p.m.
  • Wine and Dine Summer Social - June 14, 6:30 p.m. 
  • Marijuana Forum - July 9, 6:30 p.m. 
  • Annual General Meeting - Sept. 24, 5:30 p.m.
  • Symposium on Updates in Primary Care - Oct. 12
  • Holiday Social - Nov. 1
OTHER EVENTS
Mental Health America-Pueblo presents “The Evolution of CMHIP” - April 10

Join Mental Health America – Pueblo Wednesday, April 10, 2019, 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Table 67 on The Riverwalk for “The Evolution of CMHIP” by John R. DeQuardo, MD, of Colorado Mental Health Institute-Pueblo. Email mhapueblo@gmail.com to inquire about space, as it is past the RSVP deadline. Cost is $21 for nonmembers and $5 for a nonmember certificate of attendance.
Parkview 2019 Symposium on Pain Management - April 13

Parkview Medical Center will hold their 2nd Annual Symposium on Pain Management Saturday, April 13, 7 a.m. - 4 p.m. Find more information and register at www.parkviewmc.com/pain-mgmt.
Emerging Strategies to Address the Opioid Crisis, Colorado Springs - April 17

The Colorado Consortium for Prescription Drug Abuse Prevention will host free event on April 17 in Colorado Springs, "Emerging Strategies to Address the Opioid Crisis." Speakers include Dr. Mike Nerenberg and Judy Solano of the Southern Colorado Harm Reduction Association, and Dr. Shaun Gogarty of Parkview Medical Center. Find more information and register here.
2nd Multi-Specialty Convening on Opioids - April 27 in Denver

The Colorado Medical Society will hold its second multi-specialty convening on Opioids Saturday, April 27, 9 a.m. - 3 p.m. at the CMS Office, 7351 E. Lowry Blvd., Denver, CO 80230. CMS will gladly pay for lodging and mileage reimbursement should you be traveling > 25 miles each way. The multi-specialty facilitation is designed to develop recommendations from physicians for strategies to combat the opioid crisis (funded through a grant from the Colorado Consortium for Prescription Drug Abuse Prevention). They need new and varied voices at the table. RSVP to amy_goodman@cms.org.
Prescription Take Back Day - April 27, 2019

The Drug Enforcement Administration's (DEA) National Prescription Drug Take Back Day events provide an opportunity for Americans to remove excess prescription drugs. The next Take Back Day will be held Saturday, April 27, 2019, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Encourage your patients to turn in their unused prescription medication to the Pueblo Police Department parking lot, 200 S. Main St. Download a flyer here to display in your practice.
Pueblo Chamber of Commerce Legislative Breakfast – May 4

The Pueblo Chamber of Commerce will host a legislative wrap-up breakfast at 8 a.m. on May 4 at the Pueblo Convention Center. The event is designed for community members to hear firsthand how legislation will affect their business and quality of life. Community members can also communicate their concerns, comments, and questions to their legislators. RSVP to terrik@pueblochamber.net.
Mediterranean Diet: A dietary pattern for healthy living – May 14

A helpful workshop on healthy eating, "Mediterranean Diet: A dietary pattern for healthy living," will be offered by CSU Extension-Pueblo County on Tuesday, May 14 from 6 - 8:30 p.m. Consider attending and recommending the workshop to patients who would benefit from strategies to incorporate Mediterranean foods and habits into their lifestyle. Class fee is $10.00. Register online here by May 7.
Growing, Using and Preserving Herbs – May 21 or 22

CSU Extension-Pueblo County will offer a workshop that takes attendees through building and planting a windowsill herb garden. "Growing, Using and Preserving Herbs" will be presented on Tuesday, May 21 from 5 - 8 p.m. or Wednesday, May 22 from 1 - 4 p.m. Participants will learn to grow and care for herbs; flavor and food combinations; and how to dry and store herbs. Tell your patients! Class fee is $20 and includes a planter. Register online here by May 15.
NEWS
TV spot on physician burnout and suicide features PCMS CEO Cheryl Law

Following a radio interview, PCMS CEO Cheryl Law was featured on News Channel 13 to talk about physician burnout and suicide. Also featured was Mike Ware, CEO of the El Paso County Medical Society. Watch the video in this email or on the KDRO website.
2019 Residency “Match Day” is the largest in history

The 2019 Main Residency Match celebrated its largest in history on March 15, with a record 38,376 applicants submitting program choices for 35,185 positions. The number of available first-year (PGY-1) positions rose to 32,194, an increase of 1,962 (6.5%) over 2018. NRMP credited the influx of positions, in part, to the increased numbers of osteopathic programs that joined the Main Residency Match as a result of the ongoing transition to a single accreditation system for graduate medical education programs. Read more from the National Resident Matching Program (NRMP).
Federal CMS releases 2017 Quality Payment Program experience report

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services recently released its 2017 Quality Payment Program (QPP) Experience Report, which provides a comprehensive overview of the clinician reporting experience during the first year of the Quality Payment Program. Data within the report show significant participation and performance in both the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) and Advanced Alternative Payment Model (APM) tracks for the 2017 performance year. For more information, go to https://qpp.cms.gov.
NEWS FROM THE COLORADO MEDICAL SOCIETY
Fight to reenact professional review appears imminent: Watch for Code Blue alerts

CMS is calling for all hands on deck to reenact professional review protections for physicians in the closing month of the Colorado General Assembly. Legislation to do so (SB 19-234) was filed late last week in line with recommendations by the Department of Regulatory Agencies (DORA) and unanimously approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee at a hearing on March 25. Shortly after the bill was filed, a key sponsor of the legislation urged CMS to sit down with representatives of the Colorado Trial Lawyers Association to “work something out.” While the request to meet will be honored, CMS is very aware that physician members are extremely concerned about the idea of the professional review system being opened to discovery. A recent CMS-commissioned survey of physicians shows that members overwhelmingly agree that it is important to protect professional review documentation from being discoverable in lawsuits. Read more on CMS.org.
NEWS FROM THE AMERICAN MEDICAL ASSOCIATION

How burnout in physicians compares to other professional degrees
Since 2011, researchers from the AMA, Mayo Clinic and Stanford University School of Medicine have conducted a series of studies evaluating the prevalence of burnout among physicians and U.S. workers. These studies have consistently found that physicians are at a higher risk for burnout than workers in other fields -- even when compared with professional- or doctoral-level degrees in a field outside of medicine that also require a lengthy training process such as a JD or PhD. Read more here.
MISSION:   Fa cilitating meaningful collaboration of medical professionals in Pueblo County through social networking, education, and advocacy!  
VISION:   To c reate a medical society that serves as a venue for collaboration for the betterment of healthcare in Pueblo County, and improve the practice of medicine and life of medical professionals, locally.
Board Officers: President: Thomas Greidanus, MD; President-Elect: open position; Secretary: Marcel Junqueira, MD; Treasurer: Robert Tonsing, MD; Past-President: Alfredo Vargas, MD; CMS Representative: Brad Roberts, MD |  Directors: Julie Newburg, MD; Ross Patrick, MD; Cheryl Walker, DO; Kevin Weber, MD | Chief Executive Officer : Cheryl Law, MA, MNM
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