2020 - November Edition
D. Rajasekhar, MD, FAAP
AAP-CA2 President
President's Message

Dear fellow pediatricians and chapter members,

We are getting closer to the end of this year and looking forward for the upcoming holidays. With the increasing incidence of COVID-19 cases in the community, for many of us, celebration of holidays will be different this year with many precautions that we need to take.
Elections are behind us but we need to continue with our advocacy efforts with the newly elected leaders in the state. If you would like to get involved with advocacy and be a point person in your area to communicate with the elected leaders, please contact Tomas at chapter2@aap-ca2.org. There’s also an opportunity to sign up for the Advocacy Committee to participate in discussions that have local impact. Together we can achieve many things.
 
I would like to welcome our new chapter members and encourage them to make use of the resources available on our website, aapca2.org.
 
Telemedicine is already a part of delivering care in many pediatric offices. To have a conversation on how this is working, our Chapter is planning to take part in the AAP sponsored ECHO project starting January 2021. If your practice is interested to take part in this project, please contact Tomas at chapter2@aap-ca2.org for details.
 
Member Spotlight and Residency Corner are recently introduced items on our newsletter (Thank you to our Editorial Board for the great work). Rene Bravo, MD, FAAP, Pediatrician from San Luis Obispo, and Kaiser Permanente Pediatric Resident Shelley Shi, MD are featured this month. I hope to see more of you participate and make this part of the newsletter interesting, by submitting your personal narratives to be published.  Please read the submission guidelines below and contact chapter2@aap-ca2.org for more information.
 
Our next Advances in Pediatrics Symposium will take place virtually via Zoom on February 27, 2021 - broadcast from Tamkin Auditorium at UCLA. Please save the date. We have a plenary session with nationally recognized scientist and vaccine advocate Paul A. Offit, MD to address SARS-CoV-2 vaccines, and many other distinguished speakers on other topics. I also encourage you to look into all upcoming lectures and workshops mentioned on this newsletter, and watch the topics that may interest you.

Best wishes,
D. Rajasekhar, MD, FAAP
MIS-C Alert in LA County
Providers are asked to remain vigilant for potential cases of multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) as some students have returned to in-person school. In Los Angeles County, any patients meeting the case definition for MIS-C should be reported by phone within 1 working day.

COVID-19 Dashboards by County
  • AAP and CDC Update Policies for 20-21 Influenza Season
  • Patterns of Influenza Vaccination and Vaccine Effectiveness
  • HPV and Flu Vaccination in the Age of COVID

... and more!
CATCH Grants
2021 CATCH Grant Cycle opens November 4, 2020
The CATCH Call for Proposals will be open November 4, 2020 through January 27, 2021 at 3:00pm CST. Funds are available for pediatrician-led community-based programs that address a wide variety of child health issues.

Application Deadline is January 27, 2021 @ 3:00pm CST
If you have an idea to make a difference in your community, consider applying for a CATCH grant! The CATCH Program is a national initiative of the AAP that supports pediatricians to collaborate within their communities to advance the health of all children. Through the CATCH Program, pediatricians are empowered to identify promising solutions that work in their individual communities. The application can be found at https://www.aap.org/en-us/advocacy-and-policy/aap-health-initiatives/commpeds/catch/Pages/CATCH-Grants.aspx 

If you have questions, please reach out to your CATCH Chapter Facilitators Melissa Ruiz (ruizmj@gmail.com) or Christine Thang (cthang@mednet.ucla.edu), or staff at CATCH@aap.org.

Thank you for what you do on behalf of children!
Project ECHO - News!
Attention all pediatricians and pediatric subspecialists

Great News! Our Chapter is currently being certified to become an official Project ECHO Hub (Structured webinars that include a lecture, case presentation and group discussion). We have received funding from the AAP and the CDC to conduct two specific projects:

  • Telehealth ECHO Project
  • Infection Prevention and Control ECHO Project

We will be recruiting 10 - 15 practices from any of our seven Counties in December, with a start date of mid January. We thank the San Bernardino County Medical Society (SBCMS) for partnering with us to make a greater impact in San Bernardino County. Members from all counties are invited to participate. More details to come. Sign up below to get on the list.
Resources
Los Angeles County Immigrant Youth Resource Toolkit
The Immigrant Youth Task Force (IYTF) at UCLA and the American Academy of Pediatrics California Chapter 2 (AAP-CA2) invite you to visit The Los Angeles County Immigrant Youth Resource Toolkit, a website consolidating community resources in the greater LA area for immigrant youth and families. Our goal is to help professionals from all disciplines address the needs of their immigrant youth patients/clients with regards to health care, legal services, education, social services, and more. As our toolkit continues to evolve, we encourage you to explore and use it in your practice going forward.
To All Pediatricians in San Bernardino County
ARE YOU UTILIZING ACES AWARE TOOLS TO IMPROVE THE HEALTH OF YOUR PATIENTS?

Receive $29 per visit reimbursement for each Medi-Cal office visit

To All Pediatricians in San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara and Ventura County
The Landon Pediatric Foundation received a grant from ACEs Aware to provide supplemental training to providers in Ventura County (and neighboring counties). Through this funding, the ACEs Aware Ventura County training initiative was launched in partnership with the American Academy of Pediatrics- Chapter 2, First 5 Ventura County (Help Me Grow Ventura County), and the Ventura County Health Care Agency... Read more >>>

Learn about the 3-Tiered Medi-Cal Provider Training Reward System, here
Learn about the implementation steps, here
Now Recruiting Providers in Riverside County
Are you a pediatrician in Riverside County? Through a generous grant from First 5 Riverside, the AAP Chapter 2 can provide free books and support to start a Reach Out and Read program at your clinic.
Reach Out and Read works directly with pediatric providers to share the lifelong benefits that result from families reading aloud to their children every day. Through Reach Out and Read, pediatric teams can provide new, age- and language-appropriate books and share literacy advice with children and parents at each well-child visit. Contact our Reach Out and Read Coordinator, Staci Scranton, at info@reachoutandreadie.org or (909) 709-1441.

Visit our website
Watch our new video!
Latest Podcast Episode
"A Good Time To Be Born"
 
It’s easy to think that the way we think about children and parenting is the way it’s always been — the birth of a child is accompanied by the expectation that that baby will grow up happy, healthy, and become an adult. However, a mere century ago that wasn’t necessarily the case. So what changed? How has the role of parenting transformed? Dr. Perri Klass, author of the new book "A Good Time to Be Born", joins us to talk about the social, and medical, events that transformed childhood and parenting.
Support your Chapter and Reach Out and Read on Amazon

Use this link to select us as your charitable organization at AmazonSmile. Then for every eligible purchase you make at AmazonSmile, the AmazonSmile Foundation will donate 0.5% of the purchase price to us.

Regional Centers and Early Start programs Continue to be open!

Regional Centers and Early Start programs are operating and serving families during the COVID crisis. Regional Centers continue to operate and to provide services including Early Intervention services during this time, typically through remote service delivery or telehealth. Furthermore, Regional Centers continue to accept referrals and applications for Early Start and Lanterman (over age 3) programs as well as conduct assessments for program eligibility using telehealth.  Please visit the website of your local Regional Center or the California Department of Developmental Services (www.dds.ca.gov) for more information. Please continue to refer children with suspected developmental delays or developmental disabilities to the Regional Center provides service in your area.
 
Carlo DeAntonio, MD, FAAP
Director, Clinical Services | North Los Angeles County Regional Center
Phone: 1-818-756-6379 
Resources from First 5 California

New Parent Kits - Free!
First 5 CA, in collaboration with the Institute for Healthcare Advancement (IHA) are offering New Parent Kits at no cost. The kit is worth $70 and includes the book "What to Do When Your Child is Sick". This is a great resource for new parents. Take advantage of this limited time offer. Order up to 100 free kits to hand out to new parents. Available to the first 15 practices only (or 1,500 kits).
FREE KITS
IHA Videos in English and Spanish
Member Spotlight Articles
The Member Spotlight is written to highlight our chapter membership. Chapter members can submit personal narratives about themselves with a focus on how they maintain their physician wellness in the face of everyday struggles and challenges. Authors may also choose to highlight a practice, volunteer activities, QI projects, etc. The purpose of the spotlight series is to encourage and foster unity and support within the chapter.
Member Spotlight - County of San Luis Obispo
Rene Bravo, MD has been a primary care pediatrician on the Central Coast for 34 years. He founded a single specialty group practice, Bravo Pediatrics, twenty years ago. He is a past First Five Commissioner in San Luis Obispo County and serves on the Board of Trustees for the California Medical Association.
Dr. Bravo is the Chairman of CenCal Health (the Medical Managed Care Organization for San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara Counties). He was President of the United State Pharmacopeial Convention (USP) in Washington, DC, working for 20 years in the area of international food and drug standard setting. Dr. Bravo is AAP-CA2 Area Representative in the County of San Luis Obispo. Read more >>>
Residency Corner
The Residency Corner is dedicated to highlighting resident voices and providing an opportunity to find peer connections across the residency programs in the chapter. It is a space for residents to publish articles on their topics of interest. Submissions from all areas are welcome, including sharing ideas to stay socially connected during residency, describing personal hobbies or passions, highlighting resident research or QI projects, describing advocacy efforts, or providing advice and perspective on transitions during residency. The Residency Corner will rotate monthly to showcase a representative from each of the residency programs in the chapter.
Name: Shelley Shi, MD
Year in residency: PGY3
Residency program: Kaiser Permanente Los Angeles
Medical school: David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA
Hometown: San Ramon, California

Challenges thus far: ​Embracing and accepting the fact that even as a PGY3... Read more >>>
Upcoming Events
November 16 | Immigrant Youth Speaker Series
Immigrant Youth Speaker Series:
Likely Gains and Challenges Remaining for LGBTQ+ Immigrant Youth: Visions for the Future

11/16/20, 4-5 PM

RSVP HERE to receive the Zoom link
Live translation to Spanish will be provided

November 19 | AAP COVID-19 Townhall Series
Bi-weekly live video conferences where you can learn more about COVID-19 from AAP experts. You may submit questions on the registration form. This is a nationwide event.

Pediatrician Resilience in the Time of COVID-19
November 19, 2020 at 7:00PM CT/5:00PM Pacific
December 1 | COVID-19 Vaccine Update - Via Zoom

COVID-19 Vaccine Update

Franklin Pratt, MD, FACEP Medical Director
Vaccine Preventable Disease Program
Los Angeles County DPH

Tuesday, December 1, 2020
11:30 AM Pacific
Join Zoom Meeting

Meeting ID: 915 4376 0968
Passcode: 788022
One tap mobile
+16699009128,,91543760968# US (San Jose)
December 3 | AAP-CA2 Workshop - Via Zoom
Scott Hunter, MD, MHS
Attend a Workshop on
Pharmacotherapy for Smoking Cessation
With Scott Hunter, MD, MHS
Child, Adolescent, and Addiction Psychiatrist
Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health

A CME event sponsored by AAP-CA2
Funded by the American Academy of Pediatrics

Thursday, December 3, 2020
6:30 – 7:30 PM
Learning Objectives
  • Demonstrate knowledge of pharmacotherapies for nicotine use disorder treatment, highlighting the safety and efficacy of each.
  • Describe smoking cessation pharmacotherapy dosing and how to enhance its effectiveness in patients.
  • Review the role of counseling in increasing the success of quit attempts
January 7 | ACEs Aware LA Lecture Series
Save the date for January 7, 2021 at 6:00 PM as First 5 LA and AAP-CA2 bring to you the ACEs Aware Peer-to-Peer Lecture Series.

January 7 - ACEs Science – The Physiology of Toxic Stress
  • Christine Thang, MD, FAAP
February 11 - ACEs Policy, Advocacy, and the Future of Trauma-Informed Pediatric Practice
  • Adam Schickedanz, MD

March 18 - After screening: Building ACEs Response Interventions and Overcoming Barriers to Referrals.
  • Carlo DeAntonio, MD, FAAP

April 22 - Burnout prevention/Multigenerational trauma
  • Nirupama Madduri, MD, FAAP
  • Adwoa Osei, MD

January 14 | CHOC Children's Lecture Series
CHOC Children’s Virtual Pediatric Lecture Series provides online CME lectures at no cost. All lectures are at 12:30 PM. Click the link to register.

February 27, 2021 | 32nd Annual Virtual Symposium
Save The Date!
Broadcast live from
Tamkin Auditorium at UCLA
Saturday, February 27
7:15 AM - 3:30 PM

Sponsored by
UCLA Child and Family Health Leadership Training Program
Keynote Speaker
Paul A. Offit, MD

"Developing a SARS-CoV-2 Vaccine at Warp Speed"
Wendy De La Peña, MD

"Childhood Arthralgias"
And more!
Welcome New Chapter Members
Welcome the following NEW members who joined the Chapter in October
  • Stacy Catalon, MD, FAAP - (Loma Linda)
  • Laura Lazzarini, MD, FAAP (Los Angeles)
  • Helen Lederer, MD, FAAP - (Los Angeles)
  • David Oh, MD - (Redondo Beach)
  • Siamak Safar, MD, FAAP - (Westlake Village)
  • Margaret Srour, MD, FAAP - (Santa Barbara)
  • Jeff Yu, MD, FAAP - (Los Alamitos)
Thank you for your support!
Chapter Committees and Sections
Chapter committees are great opportunities to get involved in areas that interest you the most. Furthermore, if you are a Fellow member (FAAP), local involvement could position you for leadership opportunities at National AAP. To learn more about our various Committees and Sections, and to sign up, please visit aapca2.org/committees.
New: ADVOCACY
Be the voice in your County. Share local issues that need to be addressed with grassroots efforts. Sign-up here
New: MEDIA and COMMUNICATIONS
Do you have an interest in media and communications? Would you like to learn how to structure sound bytes when speaking with the media? Or perhaps how to be a more effective Tweetrician? . Sign-Up here
VAPING and E-CIGARETTES
Engage in the process of local ordinances implementing strict tobacco control. Learn about speaking opportunities at schools to inform/educate students and parents. Sign-up here
Article Submissions
Article submissions will be reviewed on a rolling basis. The newsletter is published the second Sunday of each month.
Please view all Newsletter issues online at https://aapca2.org/publications/
 
You may direct questions and article submissions to the "American Academy of Pediatrics - CA Chapter 2" <chapter2@aap-ca.org>.

The AAP-CA2 Newsletter Editorial Review Board
Established in July 2020. Its goals are to highlight educational content and resources of value to chapter members and to showcase our chapter membership.
Sarah Gustafson, MD, FAAP
Pediatric hospitalist at Harbor-UCLA
Pallavi Kamra, MD, FAAP
General pediatrician at Clinicas del Camino Real in Ventura County.
Nirupama Madduri, MD, FAAP
General pediatrician in a private practice clinic in Arcadia, CA, Consultant for the Department of Developmental Services.
Christine Thang, MD, FAAP
General pediatrician at UCLA,