MMS NEWS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS
Managing Workplace Conflict: This CME builds a stronger, happier team
Managing Workplace Conflict: Improving Leadership and Personal Effectiveness helps
physicians in clinical practice, and those in administration and
leadership, explore and improve the relationships that drive the medical
work environment. Space is limited; register today. This two-day
experiential course is jointly provided by the Massachusetts Medical
Society and Physician Health Services, Inc., an MMS corporation. The
program develops techniques for minimizing stressful dynamics and
conflict with colleagues and patients. It uses real (de-identified)
workplace conflicts supplied in advance by attendees as examples for
exploration and change, with role-playing and focused feedback. The
program takes place March 22–23 at MMS Headquarters in Waltham; information (including CME risk management credits) and registration.
GIC: Upcoming major shift of patients to different plans
The
Group Insurance Commission (GIC), which manages health insurance
benefits for 400,000 state workers and retirees, has finalized a plan
that will reduce the number of insurance companies that can sell plans
through the agency, beginning July 1, according to State House News Service.
- All plans offered by Harvard Pilgrim Health Care and Fallon Community Health will be eliminated;
- Tufts Health Plan will sell insurance only to Medicare recipients;
- Unicare,
Neighborhood Health Plan, and Health New England will be the only three
carriers to offer plans to active state workers and non-Medicare
retirees.
State House News Service
reported: “State officials said the change would save the state $20.8
million next year, and make choices easier for beneficiaries by
eliminating similar plans with similar benefits. GIC said almost half of
all members would be able to keep their plan, and most members will be
able to keep their doctors and networks, even if they are forced to
switch plans.”
The
GIC will be holding public hearings to explain these changes to their
workers and retirees. We anticipate that over the next few months,
physician practices will receive notices from plans about the timing of
these changes, and you will likely have the opportunity to discuss these
changes with your patients. The MMS encourages you to stay alert
to this dramatic shift of patients to different carriers. The Society
will continue to monitor the situation. Questions? Contact Yael Miller; ymiller@mms.org.
Member Satisfaction Survey: Please check your email
A
random sample of our members received our membership satisfaction
survey. Please check your email to see if you received the survey and
take 5–10 minutes to fill it out. You’ll receive a $10 discount toward
your next online CME course. Your feedback is crucial in ensuring the
MMS meets your needs. Many thanks for your help.
Reminders: Stuff you should click on
Most MMS members have renewed: Help us get to 100%
Thank
you to all our members (77 percent) who have renewed their MMS
membership for 2018. If you haven't yet, please renew today, and stay
connected with your colleagues from across the Commonwealth. At 25,000
strong, the MMS is Massachusetts’ largest physician-led organization
working on behalf of physicians and their patients. Online renewal is simple and only takes minutes. Visit www.massmed.org/renew now. Questions? Call (800) 322-2303, ext. 7495.
MMS membership now includes complimentary subscriptions to both the New England Journal of Medicine (which otherwise costs $189 a year) and NEJM Journal Watch Online (which otherwise costs $129 a year).
Flu season 2018: How to make a strong recommendation about the flu vaccine
Flu
season is peaking early. MDPH is recommending select tools to help
providers discuss influenza with patients, including patients who are
hesitant to get the flu vaccine.
How and why to get involved in an MMS committee
Getting
more involved with the MMS is a way to expand your network and
friendships, diversify the Society, and help shape medical practice and
policy. Consider participating on a committee (with more than 40, we're
bound to have at least one that aligns with your interests) or the
Member Interest Network Executive Council. Committee appointments are
for specific terms. We have put in place resources for distance
participation, including conference calls and online
meetings. Applications are due March 2; more info and applications.
Benefit Buzz: Legal Advisory Plan—Legal Advisory Plan for Medical Groups
Professional
liability policies may not cover complaints that arise before the Board
of Registration in Medicine (BORIM). Even if those are covered by your
policy, the relevant benefits may be limited. Avoid financial caps
during an investigation by utilizing the Legal Advisory Plan (LAP),
which fills the insurance gap. The LAP is a members-only, affordable
legal service plan, designed to offer expert advice from plan attorneys
on Board matters. Enroll or renew for January 2018 – January 2019
coverage for $70 a year* — a fraction of standard legal fees.
*Additional discount are available for groups of five or more: learn more. Questions? Email lap@massmed.org or call (781) 434-7311.
Adult immunization champion award and conference
Do
you have a colleague or peer who has improved adult immunization rates
in Massachusetts? The Massachusetts Adult Immunization Coalition is
accepting nominations for its 2018 Champion Award. Nominations are due
February 16; download a nomination form.
Save the date: The 23rd annual Massachusetts Adult Immunization Conference, organized by MDPH and the Massachusetts Adult Immunization Coalition, will be held on April 10, 2018, 8:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m. in Marlborough. Registration opens mid-February. Questions? Contact alexandra_burke@jsi.com or (617) 482-9485.
January 27: New England Conference on Global and Community Health for Trainees
This
full-day conference includes lectures and workshops on global and
domestic health topics, and opportunities to network with others
involved in global and community health work. The keynote speech —
Towards a Global Public Health — will be delivered by Sandro Galea, MD,
DrPH, dean and Robert A. Knox Professor at Boston University School of
Public Health. The conference, sponsored by the MMS and its Committee on
Global Health, will be held on Saturday, January 27, 2018, 8:30 a.m.
to 4:30 p.m. at the MMS Headquarters, Waltham; information and registration. Entries to the "Service in Global Health" photo contest for medical students and residents are due by January 9.
What's up at the State House
Testifying on the CARE Act for combatting opioid addiction
The MMS provided testimony to the Committee on Mental Health, Substance Use and Recovery on
a bill aimed at addressing the opioid epidemic. The Society conveyed
its strong support for provisions relating to educating young people on
substance use, increasing access to naloxone, and facilitating the
“partial fill” of opioid medications. The Society emphasized its support
for electronic prescribing of controlled substances, while expressing
concerns about mandating the practice as currently written. The Society
opposed the creation of a Prescribing Oversight Board and expressed
additional concerns about involuntary civil commitments for substance
use disorder. The MMS requested that additional evidence-based
interventions are incorporated into this legislation, including
Medication-Assisted Treatment in emergency departments and a pilot
supervised injection facility.
Educational programs and events
View our full calendar of upcoming live CME activities. Unless otherwise noted, all events are held at MMS Headquarters, 860 Winter St., Waltham, MA.
Managing Workplace Conflict: Improving Leadership and Personal Effectiveness
Thursday & Friday, March 22–23, 2018, 8:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.
The above activities have been approved for AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™
Featured online CME courses — Risk Management credit
The above activities have been approved for AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™
Find additional risk management online CME activities.
This week in health care
Sign up for daily roundups of health news affecting Massachusetts.
Tufts Medical Center CEO to take on new role in parent company
Wagner,
who took a hard-line approach during a nurses strike at Tufts last
year, plans to leave the CEO job in May to become chief physician executive for the Wellforce network.
Massachusetts teacher, 68, dies from flu
Phyllis Gotlib, a 68-year-old teacher at the Clarke Elementary School, passed away Wednesday, shortly after coming down with the flu.
UMass Memorial fire destroys several cars
Several cars were destroyed after a fire sparked at a parking garage at the UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester Wednesday night.
Harvard study finds duration, not dosage, is key in opioid problems
"As surgeons, we often struggle to balance the risk of abuse with our duty to manage pain,
but our findings underscore how potent a single stroke of the pen can
be in fueling this risk," co-first author Gabriel Brat, an instructor at
the school and a trauma surgeon at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical
Center, said.
Baker, top health official tout 72-hour involuntary holds for drug users
The Massachusetts Medical Society said the hold provision "raises concerns that patients who have been involuntarily committed
would end up in emergency departments, rather than in facilities and
programs that can deploy medically appropriate approaches to aiding
those with substance use disorder."
Former surgeon general sounds alarm on hidden toll of loneliness
The mortality effect associated with loneliness
is even similar to the life-shortening that we see with smoking 15
cigarettes a day. Essentially that data is telling us that loneliness
kills.
Red Sox commentator Jerry Remy finishes cancer treatments
In
what was a grueling, monthslong process that dated back to June 2017,
Remy announced on Twitter that his surgeries, chemotherapy, and
radiation for lung cancer have come to an end.
Lawmakers call on AG to investigate company closing nursing homes
Eight
state legislators are asking the Massachusetts attorney general to
investigate a health care company that plans to close four nursing homes
and an assisted living facility in Greater Boston, accusing it of
misusing state money at the facilities it plans to shut down.
Clinton Hospital to close endoscopy unit
The Massachusetts Nurses Association argued in a statement Monday the planned closure is in violation of state Department of Public Health regulations.
CVS planning 42 Mass. drug disposal centers
Forty-two new disposal units
are planned at CVS pharmacies in Massachusetts to make it easier for
people to safely get rid of unwanted, unused, or expired medications, a
development that state officials say will help address opioid abuse.
BMC doctors prescribe free tax help to patients
The
StreetCred program, the brainchild of Marcil and another former BMC
resident, aims to increase the number of families making use of the
earned income tax credit — which is available for low- to moderate-income working people, especially those with children.
