Scott C. Woller, MD, FACP, ACP Governor
Dear ACP Utah Members:
It has been an action-packed quarter. Since my last update, our Utah ACP Chapter has been especially active!
Events have included a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion gathering under the leadership of Drs. Bireen Whitten MD, FACP, Amy Cowan MD, FACP, and our CMR, David Chen, MD. Keep an eye out for announcements to gather with this amazing group of individuals that is continually working to advance equity and inclusion in our communities.
Our spectacular Early Career Physician (ECP) committee hosted a terrific social outing at the Utah Hogle Zoo for the Zoo Brew benefit! It was a great opportunity for fellowship and a sincere thanks to Drs. Megan Engelen, DO, FACP, Kamal Sahu, MD and Ken Schaecher, MD FACP.
Dr. Katie Lappe, MD FACP along with our Medical Student Internal Medicine Interest Group Chairs Drs. Mita Hoppenfeld, MD, and Lara Hayes, MD hosted an amazingly attended event entitled, “Branding Yourself for Internal Medicine Residency.” These wonderful ACP physician leaders held the room with rapt attention.
The Clinical Vignette Competition led by Dr. Emily Signor, MD, FACP was a tremendous success again this year. The 5 finalists that presented included Dr. Deborah Furman, MD, (Winner), Ellenor Chi, Elsha Eggink, Caroline Wang-Crocker, and Jacob Winter. If you were unable to attend the grand rounds, a link to the presentations is here [https://medicine.utah.edu/internal-medicine/grand-rounds/2023] A special thanks to Drs. Rick Rose, MD, FACP, John Gerstenberger, MD, and Danielle Babbel, MD who served as judges this year. Mark your calendar is for the poster competition which will precede our Utah Chapter Meeting March 7th, 2024.
The hard work of our Membership and Retention Committee led this year by Jennifer Scott MD, FACP in conjunction with the response from EACH OF YOU (our members) led to our Utah chapter ONCE AGAIN being recognized with a top award for the Chapter Challenge Outreach to Unpaid Membership. ACP Utah Chapter was presented 2 (two!!) $1000 award stipends Early Career Physicians to offset attendance at the Internal Medicine Meeting ACP 2024 in Boston! THANK YOU for your continued engagement in our ACP!
This year's Utah Medical Association House of Delegates was held at Rice Eccles Stadium and continues to serve as the premier opportunity for Utah physicians to discuss, debate and vote on health policies for the UMA to take to Utah's legislature. We thank the ACP delegates, Matt Mulligan, MD, FACP, Mary Tipton MD, FACP, Tony Musci MD, FACP, Winston Bokor MD, FACP, Miguel Galindo MD, FACP, and Sydney LeGuyader MD, FACP for their participation.
Are you interested in Healthcare Policy that continues to shape how we practice medicine every day and into the future?
Please consider joining our Healthcare Policy Committee! Interested parties are being gathered so PLEASE reach out to join a really dynamic ACP Utah Chapter committee by contacting our Executive Director Ms. Cami Bills at: contact@utahacp.com to learn more.
Wishing you and your loved ones an active, healthy, and wonderful winter!
Sincerely,
Scott C. Woller, MD FACP FCCP
scott.woller@imail.org
HOT TOPICS
ACP Leaders Advocate to Increase Investment in Primary Care
In a new op-ed published in Medical Economics, ACP's Executive Vice President and Chief Executive Officer Darilyn V. Moyer, MD, MACP, FRCP, FIDSA, FAMWA, FEFIM and Senior Vice President and Chief Advocacy Officer Shari M. Erickson, MPH voice the necessity of creating a nationwide strategy to invest more in primary care.
All for Focus Group Participation Around Supporting High-Quality Primary Care
Participate in a one-time virtual discussion (focus group) about the challenges of providing high quality primary care. Particularly of interest is a discussion with physicians who are NOT in value-based payment models, referring to initiatives such as the Comprehensive Primary Care Plus model, Primary Care First, and Medicare Shared Savings Programs (ACOs) run by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).
Anyone interested should email Cindy Alvarez at calvarez@mathematica-mpr.com and provide your name, email, and phone number.