June Comes with Transitions and Achievements
June comes with transitions and achievements,
Continued Awareness, statements and stances.
Are we continue with our advocacy
Resilient, thoughtful and enthusiastically.
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President's Column
Raelene Walker, MD, FAAP
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It is graduation season for schools right now, a time of transitions and for acknowledgements of past struggles and successes, and hopes for new beginnings and fresh starts. That timing fits with where we currently are with COVID, the lowest numbers in a year and favorable trends, with vaccines saving the day. Our adolescents are now eligible and fairly soon our younger kids will be as well. As the immediacy of the COVID pandemic fades locally, we can now transition to focusing more on other issues and there are several I would like to bring up.
Gun violence is a uniquely American epidemic and as our communities have reopened, we are seeing a tragic return and escalation of it. This is an ongoing public health crisis and we must change this. June 4 was Gun Violence Prevention Day and I hope you join our chapter and other advocates in using this time as a transition to more actively work on this horrific issue. The intersection with anti-racism, police violence, and other equity issues also connects with our work on ACEs and mental health and we will continue to address these complex issues and partner with other groups doing the same. I also would like to highlight this statement that our board will be discussing soon, with the goal of adding this to our chapter statements. The impetus for this was the recent violence in Gaza, but it is unfortunately applicable more broadly.
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Statement on Violence Against Children
California Chapter 1, American Academy of Pediatrics (AAPCA1) unequivocally condemns violence against children. The targeting of civilian sites, schools, clinics/hospital systems, humanitarian missions, and international media outlets is a violation against human rights. As an organization that stands for the health and wellbeing of children, proactively advocates for equity and inclusion, and champions our work in mental health and Adverse Childhood Experiences, we strive to address the disparities within, regardless of race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation and religion. With our work against discrimination, homelessness, gun violence and more; for pediatric communities including BIPOC, immigrant, LGBTQ, and disabled; we will not stand silently to witness such inhumane actions.
Every child is a human first. We ask and empower you and every child health advocate to urge those in power to follow the UN Human Rights Universal Declaration of Human Rights and to continue to advocate for children.
I would like to acknowledge and thank our chapter board members who have completed their terms and are rotating off our board. As a volunteer organization, we rely on the expertise, time and passion of our board members and greatly appreciate you. Thank you to Drs. Rhea Boyd, Yvonne Brouard, Diane Dooley, and Ravinder Khaira. And a special thank you to Dr. John Takayama who is retiring from the executive board after 6 years. You are amazing people and pediatricians! And now that our chapter elections are complete, welcome and thank you to our new board members, and members in new positions starting in July. The election results and announcement are below. Congratulations and thank you to the new members stepping up!
In addition, a reminder that our district elections have also started. Please see the enclosed information about the candidates for District Chair and District Vice Chair, featuring 2 of our own California Chapter 1 members for chair, Dr. Yasuko Fukuda and Dr. Zoey Goore.
I also want to bring additional attention to our three special achievement award winners from our chapter, awarded last month. Congratulations, and thanks!
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Jacques-Emmanuel Corriveau, MD, FAAP
As chair of the AAP California SGA Committee, Dr. Corriveau is an outstanding advocate for children. He deserves special thanks for leadership during difficult challenges this past year.
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Dayna Long, MD, FAAP
Dr. Long is an outstanding and inspirational teacher and leader in community health and equity. We especially honor her leadership as our subject matter expert for our ASHEW grant.
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Renee Wachtel , MD, FAAP
Dr. Wachtel has impressively led writing and winning grants for our chapter this year, and helps lead many projects. We greatly appreciate her numerous skills and amazing contributions.
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In closing, Happy Pride month to all and special thanks to our chapter executive director Isra Uz-Zaman for everything during my term as chapter president. I adore and appreciate you, and this organization.
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Past, Present and Future
John Ichiro Takayama, MD, MPH, FAAP
Past President
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We’re doing just fine!
As a chapter, we are in the best shape we have ever been (I’m biased) in the past 10 years! I wanted to say that first, so that I do not mislead you with some musings about the past. We were not always in this special space. In the summer of 2015, our expenses had overtaken our income, we were reaching into our rainy day funds, and in the middle of major administrative downsizing. We could no longer reimburse committees for dinner meetings, we had eliminated our physical office, and our long-term Executive Director was about to retire. Resilience comes to mind. By 2018, our membership had grown, our net revenue (income minus expenses) turned positive and we were embarking on an initiative to improve access to mental health services. We did make some painful decisions and were fortunate to be able to transform ourselves into a smaller, flexible and more dynamic organization.
Transitions and Teamwork
One of the most difficult tasks for any chapter is to switch from one Executive Director (ED) to another; in our case, we transitioned through two additional ED’s before welcoming Isra Uz-Zaman, MS, our current ED, two years ago. This meant interviewing and selecting candidates, writing contracts, orienting new EDs, and helping to assure a smooth handover, all without impacting day-to-day chapter operations. We could not have done this without experienced guidance by Kris Calvin, then Executive Director of AAP California, the umbrella organization for the four California chapters; as well as joint efforts by seasoned chapter members (see below). During this period, we discovered that our bylaws were not in compliance with state laws and regulations, prompting both revision and simplification, but ultimately strengthening our chapter infrastructure.
Population Health
All of us on the Board of Directors do what we do because our interests and passions extend beyond our offices and practices. We educate, because we want to improve care; we advocate, because we want all children to have access to the improved care. Yet we have been tested as of late by a series of events outside of our control, a new federal administration, the separation of children from parents at our southern border, repetitive episodes of gun violence, raging wildfires, the epidemic of police killing of Blacks, systemic racism; and the current Covid-19 pandemic, disproportionately affecting people of color, and with profound effects of prolonged separations and school closures. Go visit our website, redesigned less than two years ago, and view our webinars, newsletter articles and collated resources; what I hope you will see are highlights of what all of us have been able to do together!
Quality Improvement
How do we improve care? Slowly, methodically, collaboratively and by adopting a feedback system. QI is precisely that, not anything too fancy, just keeping track of what we do, and for the entire practice (i.e., team-based care) to review results and discuss the next small change. One of our earlier chapter QI projects was to improve HPV immunization rates among 11-12 year olds in 2016; memorable small steps included describing HPV vaccine as a vaccine against cancer and bundling the Tdap, HPV and MCV4 (meningococcal vaccine) administration orders. The aim of our most recent QI project, the ASHEW Initiative, is to improve screening about social determinants of health; and our discussions have focused on systems changes, creating safe places for sharing sensitive information, building practice-family partnerships, and committing to health equity and social justice. Our hope is to disseminate what we have learned, to support the range of practice types all across Northern California, so that we can be more efficient and effective medical homes.
Gratitude
Our chapter is stronger, our chapter leadership more diverse, our chapter members more involved than ever before. The last six years has truly been a team effort, and I want to thank, in chronological order, Gena Lewis, MD, FAAP, Zoey Goore, MD, MPH, FAAP, Raelene Walker, MD, FAAP and Nelson Branco, MD, FAAP past, current and soon-to-be Chapter Presidents; and recognize Beverly Busher, Rolf Davidson, Maria Sperber, JD, and Isra Uz-Zaman, our past and present Chapter EDs, for all of your contributions; and finally, appreciation to all of you, the many members of our chapter and board, colleagues and friends and families, without whose generosity, passion, wisdom and commitment, we would not be where we are today. Thank you and please take care!
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Reminder: Join our Chapter Book Club! |
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The Book Club is excited to announce our first meeting will be taking place on Thursday, June 24 from 7:00-8:30 PM. The first book we will be reading is The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett. To learn more and get involved, fill out the interest survey below!
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The ACEs Screening tool and initiative to address childhood trauma is a small step in a long history of pediatric research and programs on understanding how children thrive, and how we can support them.
This month's article focuses on the powerful impact of positive parenting in decreasing the risk of childhood developmental, social or behavioral delays.
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Pediatric Perspectives: Positive Parenting |
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I heard of ACEs, but what are PACEs?
By Dr. Renee Wachtel, MD, FAAP
Chair, Committees on Development and Behavior and School Health
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Research about thousands of participants in many countries and cultures substantiate the cumulative harmful effects of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) on health and psychological and social functioning. However, a new study by Sheffield Morris et al. (Adversity and Resilience Science, 2021) studied the role of Protective and Compensatory Experiences or PACEs in childhood to buffer the negative effects of ACEs on later parenting. |
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Visit the PACEs Connection page HERE. This page is designed for members of AAP California to share events and resources related to ACEs!
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AAPCA1 & Project Firstline |
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May Blog Post:
Addressing Vaccine Hesitancy in our Patients & Families
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By Drs. Peter Cooch, MD, FAAP & Graciela Wilcox, MD, MPH, FAAP |
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Welcome to the final blog post for the CDC Project Firstline/AAP Partnership! |
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It is an exciting day in your clinic! One of the COVID-19 vaccines (from Pfizer/BioNTech) has just received an emergency use authorization for 12–15 year old kids, and local pharmacies and public health vaccination sites have already started vaccinating children in this age group. Meanwhile, your clinic is still working out the logistics of when you’ll start carrying COVID-19 vaccines for children, while tackling the backlog of children who have fallen behind their routine immunization schedule during the pandemic. What do you do next? How do you tackle the challenges that have come up as we attempt to get our kids back on track with their health? |
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Catch Up on Childhood Immunizations
Morgan Leighton, MD, FAAP
Chapter Immunization Representative
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As we all know, many children have fallen behind on routine vaccinations during the COVID-19 pandemic. We know pediatricians and practices are working hard to catch patients up on missed well-child care and vaccines while maintaining infection control measures for everyone’s safety. Below are some suggestions and resources from the California Department of Public Health’s Immunization Branch. |
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Membership Spotlight!
#MadetoSave COVID Vaccine Webinar
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View the recording of the #MadetoSaveLive COVID Vaccine webinar featuring Dr. Rhea Boyd, MD, MPH, FAAP and President Obama below.
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CATCH Project Highlights 2021 |
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Equitable Health through Mindfulness, Movement, Cooking
Caren Vance, MD, FAAP & Miriam Rhew, MD, MPH, FAAP
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This projects plans to address the epidemic of unhealthy lifestyle often presenting as obesity, and hopes to develop an online group health visit for primary care pediatric offices. |
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Healing Through Art Therapy: HART Approach
Sarah Benke, DO
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This project will implement an educational workshop discussing its current research and benefits will be presented to the CBOs, allowing the opportunity to identify gaps in knowledge and better understand barriers to art therapy integration. |
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My Heart 2.0
Alexandra Curry, DO
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This project plans to educate and create a community for adolescents with congenital heart disease (CHD); a place to laugh, play and grow with individuals who understand what it’s like to grow up with a transformed, upgraded heart (hence My Heart 2.0). |
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Helping Hands: School Nurses on Frontlines
Anahita Emamian, MD
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This project seeks to raise awareness among families and school nurses on common mental health issues encountered by children through a series family centered handouts in English and Spanish. |
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The Crucial Role of Foster Parents
Keenia Tappin, MD
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This project aims to evaluate the knowledge, awareness and understanding among foster families about ACEs and the impact of ACEs on foster children. |
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District IX and National AAP Election News
The Candidates for National AAP President Elect, District IX Chairperson and Vice Chairperson have been selected. Voting for these candidates will take place August 25 - September 8, 2021.
AAP President Elect:
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Joseph L. Wright, MD, MPH, FAAP |
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Additional information about the candidates, including profiles and position statements, will be published in upcoming issues of AAP News.
District IX Chairperson Candidates:
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District IX Vice Chairperson Candidate: |
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"What's Up, Docs"
Promoting Resilience
Meghan Schmitt, MD
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The SGA Side
Your Key to State Government Affairs
Nora Pfaff, MD, FAAP and Zarah Iqbal, MD, MPH, CFAAP
SGA Chapter Representatives
The SGA committee is currently reviewing and signing on to bills.
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For the most up to date information on AAP California bill positions, letters & outcomes from the 2021 CA Legislative year, go to aap-ca.org/bill
- For latest organizational advocacy updates follow @AAPCADocs on twitter
If you have questions and/or are interested in knowing more about a certain legislation, reach out to our State Government Affairs Chapter Representatives Nora Pfaff, MD, FAAP and Zarah Iqbal, MD, MPH, CFAAP at [email protected].
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Initiatives the Chapter Signed-Off On:
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Opportunities for Your Benefit |
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Camp Doctor Opening in Piedmont East Bay Children’s Choir
The Piedmont East Bay Children's Choir is currently looking for someone to provide "Camp Doctor" coverage for Ensemble week (July 19-24) and/or Concert Choir/Joyful Voices week (July 26-31).
The responsibilities would be:
- Being on site during camp hours (9 am - 4 pm), although you would be able to work remotely while the kids are rehearsing
- Distributing medication to campers as needed (we expect this to be fairly minimal as it is a day camp)
- Ensuring compliance with our COVID protocols
- Taking care of basic first aid needs that may arise
They have a modest stipend of $750 per week budgeted for the position. Reach out to Eric Tuan at [email protected] for more information.
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June 9: AAPCA1 & ACEs Storytelling Night - REGISTER!
November 18-21: The 42nd Annual Las Vegas Seminars at Caesars Palace - SAVE-THE-DATE!
December 4: 6th Annual Pediatric Puzzles CME Conference at O’Connor Hospital - SAVE-THE-DATE!
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Add our social media accounts to get the latest chapter updates!
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Your membership makes a difference for children in California, thank you!
The AAPCA1's ability to advocate on behalf of children is only as strong as the support we receive from our members. Encourage your colleagues to join today by visiting the AAPCA1 website.
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Our mission is to promote the optimal health and development of children and
adolescents of Northern California in partnership with their families and communities, and to support the pediatricians who care for them.
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Executive Committee:
President: Raelene Walker • Vice President: Nelson Branco
• Secretary: Janice Kim • Treasurer: Nivedita More • Past President: John Takayama
Executive Director: Isra Uz-Zaman
Board Members:
North Valley MAL: Thiyagu Ganesan • Sacramento Valley MAL: Ravinder Khaira • Central Valley MAL: Yvonne Brouard • South Valley MAL: Nicole Webb • San Francisco MAL: Rhea Boyd • Santa Clara MAL: Meera Sankar • San Mateo MAL: Neel Patel • North Coastal MAL: Jeffrey Ribordy • Monterey Bay MAL: Graciela Wilcox • Alameda MAL: Reshem Agarwal
• Contra Costa/Solano MAL: Diane Dooley
Pediatric Insider News Editors:
• Yvonne Brouard • Mika Hiramatsu • Alyssa Velasco
Staff Members:
• Executive Assistant: Sabah Elias • Project Coordinator: Aliza Newman
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