Happy Thursday! Enjoy your NCMS Morning Rounds.
August 27, 2020
Mark Your Calendar for NCMS Annual Business Meeting, Oct. 16
While the NCMS’ Annual Business Meeting will be virtual this year, many of the traditions will remain – including remarks by the outgoing and incoming presidents, hearing reports on the state of our society and officially installing our new leadership. Please mark your calendar and plan to attend the proceedings beginning at 3 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 16.
The agenda includes guest speaker Howard Bauchner, MD, MPH, Editor, Journal of the American Medical Association, who will share his unique vantage point on the events of the past year and look ahead to the coming year.
Watch your NCMS Morning Rounds and your email box for more on the Annual Business Meeting and other educational events being planned leading up to that afternoon.
State Seeks Medical Partners for COVID Testing in Hard Hit Communities
As part of the state’s strategy to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, it is calling on local medical and community partners to increase testing efforts in hard hit communities, particularly those with historically marginalized populations. The state has developed a ‘Partner COVID-19 Testing Toolkit’ as a guide to setting up local testing events.
The kit outlines best practices, resources available to you and sources for additional information as well as guidelines on what your responsibilities are throughout the process. Included are detailed steps as you plan, prepare for and manage the community testing event.
Before you begin planning, it is important to work closely with your Local Health Department and, if a community organization is spearheading the effort, a medical partner as both will be vital throughout the process.
Here are some things that will be involved as you consider becoming a partner:
• Select a site: Choose a site that is easily accessible and can support requirements (i.e. shelter, water, etc.)
• Identify funding: Work with local businesses and organizations to identify additional partners that can help support the effort. The medical partner will be responsible for coordinating with the labs and ensuring steps are taken to apply for reimbursement for uninsured patients.
Once the event date and location have been finalized, the medical partner will help prepare for the event using the toolkit, which provides information and resources on:
• Supplies to support registration, testing, storage of samples and personal protection
• Staff roles: Consider hiring staff for general operations, registration, sample collection and traffic control
• Promoting the testing event: Increase attendance and engagement through successful promotion
On the day of the testing event, everyone will need to work together to set-up, at patient registration, sample collection, providing resources and education, disposing of PPE, sending samples to the labs and follow up.
It is important to be equipped with answers for frequently asked patient questions around contact tracing, the importance of isolation and quarantine, where patient data is going, and how patients can access additional community support through NC 2-1-1 and NCCARE360.
Please find the toolkit online here (Also in Spanish). Thank you for your commitment to slow the spread of COVID-19.
REMINDER: Be Sure You’re Eligible to Vote in NCMS Election
Voting in the upcoming NCMS election for our society’s leadership, is easy. You just need to make sure your NCMS membership and email address is up-to-date. You can renew your membership here. If you need to update your email address, please send it to our membership services department here.
The final ballots to fill positions on the NCMS Board of Directors, AMA delegation and Nominating and Leadership Development Committee will be published Sept. 24. You will receive your secure ballot and vote via email. For those without email access, we will mail a paper ballot. Voting will close on Oct. 15 and those elected will be announced the following day at the NCMS Annual Business Meeting.
The NCMS’ Nominating and Leadership Development Committee put forth the following slate of candidates:
Board of Directors
President Elect: Mike Utecht, MD
Secretary Treasurer: John Meier, IV, MD
Region 3 Representative: Karen Smith, MD
Region 4 Representative: Rachel Keever, MD
At-Large Member: Eileen Raynor, MD
At-Large Member: Bryant Murphy, MD
American Medical Association Delegation
Delegate: Hadley Callaway, MD
Delegate: William Bowman, MD
Delegate: Darlyne Menscer, MD
Delegate: Liana Puscas, MD
Alternate Delegate: Rebecca Hayes, MD
Nominating & Leadership Development Committee
Region 1: Chris Grubb, MD
Region 1: Jugta Kahai, MD
Region 2: Justin Hurie, MD
Region 4: Gregory Evans, MD
In the News
Can Mosquitos Spread the Coronavirus?, The Associated Press, 8-25-20
Learning Opportunity
The NC Medical Board (NCMB) and Wake AHEC are offering a free, pre-recorded 3-part webinar series addressing issues around prescription opioids for physicians and PAs licensed to practice in North Carolina. The three learning activities will provide clinicians with best practices for effectively and appropriately treating pain, and ultimately improving patient outcomes. Completing this series will fulfill the NCMB’s three hour controlled substances CME requirement. Learn more and sign up here.
If you have policies you’d like your NCMS Board of Directors to consider, please complete the Board input form here. Thanks for reading!