It’s Tuesday and time for your

NCMS Morning Rounds.

  May 5, 2020

News to note: Yesterday Governor Roy Cooper signed into law the COVID-19 relief package passed by the NC General Assembly over the weekend. The legislation included a number of policy provisions and financial relief to address the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Legislators are not done, however, and in addition to the House working groups that will continue meeting, both the House and Senate will be back to continue the session in two weeks. Review our summary of this legislative package, now signed into law, as well as more from the Governor’s press conference on the bill.

NCMB’s Guidance on Medical Training During Emergency

As directed in Governor Roy Cooper’s April 8 Executive Order #130, medical licensing boards are to provide guidance on the level of training and qualifications required for medical professionals to meet the state’s needs during the current state of emergency. The NC Medical Board (NCMB) issued that guidance on April 29. Read the NCMB’s memo outlining its guidance on training here.

“In considering how best to offer this guidance, NCMB quickly realized that it can’t predict the specific needs that may arise across North Carolina, or know the level of education, training and experience of clinicians facing new assignments and unfamiliar technologies or modalities,” writes NCMB President Bryant A. Murphy, MD, MBA, in the latest edition of the Board’s Forum newsletter. “That is why NCMB’s guidance boils down to this: self-assess, get training if you need it and rely on everything you’ve learned in your career.”

Dr. Murphy goes on to state that “NCMB believes the people on the ground doing the work are best positioned to know what is needed. We also trust you will assess the skills of any members of the health care team you supervise and ensure they get the training they need to work safely.”

Read Dr. Murphy’s entire Forum article here.

NCMS Business Alliance Partners Offer Resources

NCMS Business Alliance member Professional Risk Associates are standing by to help members like you as you grapple with the impact of COVID-19.

Professional Risk Associates, Inc., a medical professional liability independent agency, represents top-rated insurance companies to bring tailored coverage options to physicians. As a resource to help you be knowledgeable about your liability policy during this pandemic, they offer this one sheet list of potential policy adjustments to watch for.

Learn more about Professional Risk Associates here.

Be Recognized or Recognize Your Peers with an NCMS Award

As we do every year, the NCMS is seeking nominations for two awards – the E. Harvey Estes, MD, Community Service Award and the John Huske Anderson Award.
The E. Harvey Estes, MD, Physician Community Service Award recognizes a physician who has an outstanding record of community service that reflects well on the medical profession apart from their work or identification as a physician. Download the nomination form here.

The John Huske Anderson Award recognizes a layperson whose contributions have had a positive impact on the medical profession and the public health in North Carolina. Download the nomination form here.

Nominations are due to Evan Simmons, [email protected] by Aug. 1, 2020.

In the News

The Essential Workers Filling New York’s Coronavirus Wards, The New Yorker, 5-1-20

Learning Opportunity

This Friday’s Power Hour will examine how you can take care of yourself. While there has been increased attention to stress and burnout among clinicians for some time, dealing with this unprecedented pandemic puts a new spin on how stress affects us in our everyday lives and how we can address that. Please join us on Friday, May 8 from 1 to 2 p.m. for a conversation around self-care and wellness that includes talking about healthy habits but also goes beyond to talk about handling loss of control both personally and professionally. How does, for example, organizational culture impact our well-being and what do we do when we feel we cannot do anything?

Franklin Walker, MBA, NCMS VP of Rural Health Systems Innovation, will moderate the conversation that features Cormac O’Donovan, MD, and Marion McCrary, MD, who both have a passion for wellness and stress reduction. Please register here for this informative conversation.