Happy New Year! I hope you all had a restful end of 2021. I want to personally invite you to attend our upcoming PCMS 5th Annual Symposium on Feb. 26, 2022, and take the opportunity to network and learn in person, pending public health guidance at the time. Physician wellness continues to be a top priority of PCMS and we believe it is good for our mental health to come together in solidarity as a physician community.

Additionally, as I said in last month's column, I want to invite you to send ideas for events or speakers to Cheryl. We want to engage all members in our events so we're planning exactly what you want and need from your medical society.

Thank you, as always, for caring for your patients. Be well.

The Colorado Medical Society, in partnership with the Pueblo County Medical Society, is focused on the strategic priority of helping physicians when we need help, and much of this work to amplify physician voices starts with listening.

CMS will be traveling the state this year for listening sessions and CMS leadership, including President Mark B. Johnson, MD, MPH, will be in Pueblo on Feb. 25 to hear from you. Are you interested in scheduling a listening session at your practice? Leadership would love to meet with you, hear how to continue to be a good partner and understand how CMS can better connect you to your membership. To schedule your listening session today, email paige_brophy@cms.org.

The Pueblo County Medical Society receives numerous inquiries from patients looking for information on physicians who seemingly have disappeared. Many times the physician has retired or relocated. We want to help the public and our physician members by maintaining a record of community physicians who stop seeing patients for any reason. If you are considering retiring or relocating in 2022, or have recently retired, please notify PCMS so we have this information when the public calls. Contact PCMS CEO Cheryl Law to have a note made in your member record.

Per CDPHE: "Colorado’s supply of therapeutic treatments, including monoclonal antibody therapy and oral antivirals, is determined at the federal level. As of January 2022, the federal government is supplying an extremely limited quantity of these medications, significantly impacting the frequency at which we are able to provide them. We are hopeful that the supply of monoclonal antibody treatment and oral antivirals will ramp up significantly in the coming months."

For more information about therapeutic treatments, call the CDPHE hotline at 1-877-CO VAX CO (1-877-268-2926). The hotline is available Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. MT.

The Colorado Department of Health and Environment has reactivated Crisis Standards of Care for Emergency Medical Services (EMS). "With many EMS staff out ill and with high demands for patient transports, guidance to the EMS providers on how to best use their services is needed at this time," CDPHE said in a news release. The last time the state activated Crisis Standards of Care for Emergency Medical Services was April 2020. 

According to the release, Emergency Medical Services are an essential part of the continuum of health care that often starts with a call to emergency dispatch (e.g., 9-1-1). The crisis standards for Emergency Medical Services provide guidance for call centers, dispatch centers, and emergency medical service agencies, and responders regarding how to:

In November, the state reactivated crisis standards of care for staffing of health care systems to allow hospitals to implement staffing solutions to meeting increasing medical needs. More information here.

The Pueblo County Medical Society offers its sincere condolences to those who have lost so much during the worst wildfires in Colorado history. Please consider supporting those who have been directly impacted by the wildfires.

FRIENDS OF PCMS is a service directory of recommended resources for members only that lists trusted service providers such as auto mechanics, cleaning services, childcare providers, contractors, etc.

We are looking for trusted resources or services that will make your personal and professional lives easier. If you have someone to recommend, we ask that you provide contact information for staff to follow up. Recommendations may be reviewed by the Board of Directors and listed at the discretion of staff or the board.

Send us any ideas and we will do the rest to secure group discounts and other benefits!

The PCMS Board of Directors approved a partnership with the Pueblo Country Club to offer members another PCMS benefit. Join and the initiation fee will be waived for PCMS members -- a savings of up to $500 that also benefits our community. Read more here.

The next COVID-19 Provider Roundtable will be held Jan. 12, 2022. Zoom Meeting URL or join by phone: 888-475-4499; Meeting ID: 863 3301 6356. 1 CME Credit available to providers who attend this presentation. *Evaluation must be returned to receive CME credit* Return to: Sandra Proud - fax 584-4038 or email: sandra_proud@parkviewmc.com.

Additional resources:

Parkview Medical Center is accredited by the Colorado Medical Society to provide continuing medical education for physicians. Parkview Medical Center designates this live activity for a maximum of 1 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s) ™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

The Greater Pueblo Chamber of Commerce will hold its 111th Annual Meeting on Friday, Jan. 28, 2022 at the Pueblo Convention Center, 320 Central Main Street. The evening will begin at 6 p.m. with cocktails, hors d’oeuvres, and a silent auction. Dinner and program will follow at 7 p.m. The highlight of the event is the “Citizen of the Year” award presentation. Nomination forms are now available at: pueblochamber.org/chamber-events.

The Neuroimmune Foundation invites physicians to attend the virtual Inflammatory Brain Disorders Conference, May 20-21, 2022, via webcast. The focus is both pediatric and adult patients. CME credit is available to all live attendees, accredited in collaboration with the Wisconsin Medical Society. Speakers hail from Mayo Clinic, Stanford, Columbia, Harvard, UCSF, Georgetown, Duke, Johns Hopkins, and others. More information and registration here.

 

The virtual conference is being offered free of charge to 700 physicians thanks to generous donations.

The Colorado Medical Society has missed gathering in person, and we hope to do so in 2022! Make plans to join us for one of four regional summits held around the state.

Registration for the January summit is now open, featuring an all-member reception, CME, and the CMS Board of Directors meeting. Find more information and a link to registration here.

Sharkey, Howes & Javer is one of Denver’s oldest wealth management firms, offering comprehensive financial planning and investment strategies to help you thrive at any stage in life. Our team of CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professionals can help create a personal financial plan geared towards your specific goals. Whether you’ve worked with a financial planner before or are looking for first-time investment management strategies, we want to help build your individual path to financial success. We will be waiving the initial planning fee (starting cost of $2,000) for all members of the Pueblo Medical Society.

MISSION: Facilitating meaningful collaboration of medical professionals in Pueblo County through social networking, education, and advocacy! 

VISION: To create 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: Marcel Junqueira, MD; President-Elect: open position; Secretary: Kathleen Brown, MD; Treasurer: Robert Tonsing, MD; Past-President: Tom Greidanus, MD | Directors: CMS Representative Brittany Carver, DO; Jacob Mathew Jr., DO; Ross Patrick, MD; Brad Roberts, MD; and Kevin Weber, MD | Chief Executive Officer: Cheryl Law, MA, MNM

Visit our website at www.pueblocms.org