A Local News Wrap-up...

In August, we surveyed the membership to gather your opinions and attitudes regarding this publication. The results will be reported in detail at a future date after the Editorial Committee has had the opportunity to evaluate them. However, there was a clear indication that our readers want to hear more about local issues.

Therefore, and with the start of a new year, I thought a wrap-up of some of the issues and projects we worked on during 2001 would be in order.

• The merger of the Yolo County Medical Society and the Sacramento-El Dorado Medical Society is fully completed. At the November meeting of the California Medical Association Board of Trustees, John Whitelaw, MD, CMA President-Elect, presented our President, Dr. Robert Midgley, with an official certificate of California's newest medical society.
  
  
• During the summer, our members were asked to consider a number of non-controversial bylaws changes and policies on membership discounts. The required majority of our members voted and 98 percent of the members approved the bylaws changes; 88 percent voted to give the Board the ability to develop policy and strategies on dues discounts to recruit and retain individuals and medical groups achieving 100 percent membership. The policies are expected to be in place in 2003.
  
  
• SSVMS conducted a study comparing the number of physicians by specialty for the years 1995 and 2000. The major finding was that the total number of physicians declined by a population-adjusted percentage of 19.5 percent during the five-year period. Our study preceded statewide studies by UCSF, the California Medical Association and several other local medical societies, all drawing attention to the issue of physician supply in California. The study is available here.
  
  
• We also prepared a report on the problems and suggested solutions to ambulance diversion (available here). The system, at both local and state levels is broken - literally and figuratively. Physicians' on-call problems continue to fester and local and state solutions have been derailed by a depressed economy and a legislature consumed by energy and terrorism issues.
  
  
• Fortunately, we did not see any devastating and disruptive failure of medical groups or IPAs in our region. The fights now seem to be between the groups and for-profit HMOs. The groups appear to be winning, and the IPAs may need to fight harder. We had too many nasty, cutthroat skirmishes between colleagues, illustrating once again that we can be our own worst enemies.
  
  

During 2002, SSVMS, the CMA and the AMA will continue our work on these and other issues. We appreciate your ongoing support and active membership, and hope you will stay abreast of our activities on your behalf.

bsandberg@ssvms.org