Presdient's Letter
Carol L. Wright-Becker, MD, FACEP
This year is no different than any other year. Medicine is a forever changing environment and each year there are new concerns and issues that come up. The basic structure of ACEP National Council is that state or sections representatives write resolutions on those various current concerns in Emergency Medicine (I should add here that if you EVER feel passionate about an issue in Emergency Medicine you are welcome to write a resolution).
On Friday of the meeting those resolutions are discussed and brought forth to a Reference Committee in which various ACEP members speak for, against, and discuss wording concerns. The Reference Committee reports to the General Council whether there was a general stance for or against the resolution. On Sunday the resolutions are brought forth to all 433 voters and then as a congregation we vote to either support or not support a resolution. A detailed explanation of the resolutions that were adopted can by found here.
A short summary of some resolutions that are relevant include:
Highly Relevant for Wyoming Accepted Resolution
ACEP to work with stakeholders within the college including the Rural Emergency Medicine Section and chapters to provide a regular mechanism to seek input from rural physicians on legislation that impacts rural communities.
Of note they did bring forth the size of the voting body size. Currently, Wyoming has one vote but in general there is one vote for every 100 members of each state ACEP membership. Wyoming ACEP has a total of 48 members. Just for curiosity sake the other four-4 states with a single vote include: Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Vermont. Encourage your fellow emergency medicine physicians to come join ACEP and make efforts to move Emergency Medicine forward.
One thing I want to reinforce is that even as a small state we are important. We represent a critical subset of provided emergency care in a rural environment. I encourage you when you just want to “give up” and you say, “I’ve had it!” go forth and try to write a resolution. Our voice does matter and ACEP brings forth such power: monetary, legislative, pubic relation, etc. Many of the issues that keep you up at night might be keeping up several other members of our ACEP’s 40, 415 (as of August 2019) national members. Go forth not frustrated but willing to make a change - write a resolution, come to ACEP National Convention, and come to our local, state, federal legislature to make those changes that keep you up at night - you might actual get what you want done.
ACEP Wellness & Assistance Program
Did you know that this existed? I didn't. Reason I felt like it was important to share with all of you!
At ACEP19 in Denver, ACEP launched the ACEP Wellness & Assistance Program. This service is now available to all members and provides access to three, FREE confidential counseling or wellness coaching sessions. Call 1-800-873-7138 to register and receive support whenever, however you need it. Counseling is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Sessions can cover stress, anxiety, depression, family issues, drug and alcohol abuse, relationships, death, grief, and more. The service is strictly confidential and can be scheduled face-to-face, over the phone, via text, or through online messaging
Wellness coaching sessions are 30-minute phone calls to help reach your personal wellness goals which can include weight loss, nutrition, healthy habits, stress, caffeine reduction, injury recovery, relationships, sleep, smoking cessation, and more.
You may choose to use your three sessions using any combination of counseling and wellness coaching, up to the session limit. If interested, ACEP members can pay just $15 a year to have additional resources to manage legal and financial issues through our partner, Mines & Associates. Participants will have unlimited access to an extensive online resource library and unlimited 30-minute in-person consultations for each individual legal or financial matter and a 25% discount on legal and financial services within the Mines network. For more information, click here or read the section under National ACEP News found below.
|
