2010 House of Delegates Actions/Board Summary

Election Results
The House of Delegates and Board of Directors elected the following:

Alan Olson - President-Elect

Carol Farchmin, M.D. - Board Chair

Julie Anderson, M.D. - Speaker of the House

Daron Gersch, M.D. - Vice Speaker

Dania Kamp, M.D. – Officer-at-Large

Raymond Christensen, M.D. - Treasurer

Carol Featherstone, M.D. - AAFP Delegate

David Hutchinson, M.D. - Alternate Delegate

Terence Cahill, M.D., is the 2010-2011 President.  Patricia Fontaine, M.D., will continue to serve the MAFP as Immediate Past President.  Keith Stelter, M.D., AAFP Delegate, and Lynne Lillie, M.D., Alternate Delegate, are in the middle of two-year terms.

At the organizational Board meeting, Richard Horecka, M.D., was elected as the Director-at-Large to serve on the Executive Committee.

Matthew Horning, M.D., is serving as Resident Director and Sonia Karimi, M.D., is the Alternate Resident Director.  Nicholas Vidor, U of MN – TC, is the Student Director, and Alternate Student Directors are Elizabeth Wilkinson, Mayo, and a student to be appointed from the U of M – Duluth Campus.
 

Committee Chairs Announced
Doctor Cahill has appointed the following committee chairs for the coming year:

Academic Affairs: David Bucher, M.D.

CME: Gregory Angstman, M.D.

Finance: Raymond Christensen, M.D.

Leadership Development: Patricia Fontaine, M.D.

Legislative: Philip Stoyke, M.D.

Membership and Member Services: Corey Martin, M.D.

Practice Enhancement & Patient Advocacy: Robert Koshnick, M.D.

Public Relations and Marketing: Glenn Nemec, M.D.

Research and Quality Improvement: Therese Zink, M.D.
 

Burdensome CMS Signature Compliance Requirements
The MAFP will send resolutions to the AAFP and the AMA via MMA asking those organizations to encourage CMS to re-evaluate the requirement that all notes and orders be signed to reduce the overwhelming and time-consuming compliance burdens placed on physicians while recognizing the importance of physician accountability, fraud prevention and maintenance of quality of care.
 

Incentives Needed for Family Medicine Preceptors
The MAFP will study mechanisms to insure adequate availability of Family Medicine preceptors to meet the needs of Minnesota’s medical schools and residencies.  A resolution will be sent to AAFP encouraging evaluation and action to address the adequate supply of Family Medicine preceptors nationally.  The resolution will also suggest that AAFP develop a partnership with the American Board of Family Medicine to explore opportunities via Part #2 (SAM) as well as via Part #4 (Performance in Practice) for precepting activities to fulfill a requirement for Maintenance of Certification as an incentive for precepting.
 

Dementia Resolution Referred to the Board
Resolution #3 was referred to the Board for further study.  It said:

BE IT RESOLVED that the MAFP educate family physicians on the importance of making the diagnosis of dementia for their patients because of its impact on that patient’s own life, on the management of the patient’s health care by the family physician, on the cost of that patient’s health care, and on the social and financial impacts on that patient’s family, and 

BE IT RESOLVED that the MAFP work with family physicians to determine what sort of screening tool for dementia can most efficiently and effectively be implemented in their practices, and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the MAFP encourage the MMA to promote screening for cognitive status as “6^th” vital sign, and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the MAFP work with family physicians and others to develop efficient and effective management techniques for the patients in their medical homes with dementia with and without other co-morbidities.
 

Help for Patients to Live Capably
The House of Delegates filed a resolution suggesting that the MAFP evaluate the feasibility of writing an online resource that can be contributed to by all members of the academy that gives evidence- based advice to patients as to how they can live capably.  Delegates noted that the MAFP sent a resolution in 2001 suggesting the AAFP explore funding for a coordinated national program designed to promote healthier lifestyles.  AAFP now has a program called Americans In Motion—Healthy Interventions (AIM-HI) to help family physicians communicate with and care for patients using proven strategies from the 3-year AIM-HI research study.  For more information go to http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/clinical/publichealth/aim.html
 

Remembrance of O. Guy Johnson, M.D.
MAFP Past President O. Guy Johnson, M.D., passed away on March 18, 2010.  The House of Delegates resolved to honor and remember O. Guy Johnson, M.D., for his dedication and service to family medicine and will send an indication of that gratitude to his family.  Also, a resolution of condolence be forwarded to AAFP requesting that it be sent to his wife of 56 years, Marylyn, as an expression of appreciation for Doctor Johnson’s legacy.