Newsletter - November 3, 2023

MAFP Member Elected to AAFP Board

The MAFP is excited to announce the election of Dr. Brent Smith of Cleveland to the AAFP Board of Directors as an At-Large Member. Dr. Smith was elected during the annual AAFP Congress of Delegates from October 25-27th in Chicago.

Your Mississippi Delegation, Drs. Dustin Gentry, Jennifer Gholson, Luke Lampton and Brent Smith joined MAFP President Dr. Stephen Hammack and MAFP Members Dr. Warren Jones, (AAFP Past President) Dr. Katie Royals, (MAFP District Director) and Aman Syed Mohammed (MAFP Student Board Member) to greet attendees at the Smith booth. MAFP spouses Dawn Gentry, Beth Hammack and Louise Lampton were a huge help In conducting a successful campaign. 

The 3 board candidates wanted a cohesive campaign so chose a triathlon theme. Swim with Smith was a fun theme! The Smith team handed out state of MS stickers and neoprene water bottles to attendees during the campaign reception. 

Dr. Smith assumed his three-year Board of Directors role on October 28th, joining Dr. Sarah Sams of Ohio and Dr Jeffrey Zavala of Montana. Dr. Jen Brull, of Colorado is the new president-elect of the AAFP, as Dr Steven Furr of Alabama ascends to the presidency. 

Representing the Mississippi Academy’s members on a national stage, the delegation worked to advocate for payment and administrative reforms for our members. Mississippi carried forward resolutions on prior authorizations, pricing transparency for ethical contracting for government sponsored healthcare plans that requires the selection of not-for-profit companies when government monies are spent. Other resolutions addressed at Congress called for vaccine coverage under Medicare Part B, reevaluation of the scoring criteria for the National Health Service Corps Loan Repayment Program, addressing at risk populations under Medicaid coverage, and ensuring full scope training including pediatrics and obstetrical care. 

The Congress also addressed a call for a nominating committee. While nominating committees are common in some other healthcare organizations, the AAFP has always focused on self or chapter nominations. However, after vigorous debate, the Congress adopted standing rules that will allow for a new nominating committee charged with identifying, recruiting, and vetting nominees for At-Large Board of Director Positions as well as Officer Positions. This committee will begin work immediately, with the first chair being Reid Blackwelder, former AAFP President and Board Chair.  

MAFP Members Needed for

Survey by November 10

To date, less than 20 members have taken the AAFP Benchmark Survey. This survey is short and will help AAFP advocate the value of family medicine. Help get our numbers. Deadline is November 10.

Through Friday, November 10, you have the chance to help the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) build a career benchmark dashboard that will make it easier for the AAFP to advocate to stakeholders on the value of family medicine.

Please take 5-10 minutes to complete an important survey—which will be kept anonymous—which will help create an insightful dashboard of relevant, real data to power family physicians’ contract negotiations and drive future career decisions.

Data from the survey will be used to create the first-ever family medicine career benchmark dashboard. Members will be able to filter the data by state, gender, practice setting, or other factors to gauge how their compensation and work environment measure up. The transparency this tool will offer can support members in comparing career options, drive success in salary and contract negotiations, and uncover bias and discrimination in compensation.

In addition to providing a valuable member resource, updates to the dashboard will yield an ongoing stream of aggregated data to use when calling on the United States Congress, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and commercial insurers.

Ultimately, the goal is to give the AAFP and the Mississippi Academy of Family Physicians (MAFP) the data we need to create and implement primary care payment models that promote comprehensiveness and continuity, are agnostic to modality of care and reduce administrative burden.

The dashboard can be a powerful resource for members ONLY if thousands of family physicians respond to the anonymous survey from every state and every type of community. Please take 5-10 minutes to complete the complete the survey.

With your support, this tool can augment the progress we have made to advance family medicine and build a better healthcare system anchored by primary care.

KSA STUDY GROUP ADDED TO FALL INTENSIVE

We have added the Pain Medicine Knowledge Self Assessment (KSA) Study Group to the afternoon Fall Conference on November 11.  This activity focuses on diagnosing chronic pain syndromes in family medicine, identify pharmacologic appropriate therapy for specific conditions, including painful diabetic neuropathy, osteoarthritis, trigeminal neuralgia, and fibromyalgia, describe the use of active modalities such as exercise and physical therapy in the treatment of chronic pain, recommend appropriate pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic options for the treatment of functional chronic pain conditions, explain the indications, risks, and monitoring recommendations for long-term opioid pain medications.  The Knowledge Self-Assessment (KSA) Study Groups give you credit for your maintenance of certification through the American Board of Family Medicine. Learners come together to complete the KSA by working through 60 core competency questions. Learners work together to assess, review, and decide the best answer as a group. ABFM awards 8 credits to diplomates who complete each KSA.

The purpose of the Knowledge Self-Assessment component of Family Medicine Certification is to help identify knowledge gaps and enhance your clinical knowledge to provide high quality care. Options for completing the Knowledge Self-Assessment (KSA) requirement include single, topic-focused activities, or ongoing, quarterly questions covering a broad range of family medicine competencies. The minimum requirement for this component is to earn 10 points toward your 50-point requirement for each 3-year stage of the continuous certification process. This can be achieved by completing one KSA or four quarters of Continuing Knowledge Self-Assessments (CKSA).

Knowledge Self-Assessment (KSA) A KSA is an individual, stand-alone activity that is focused on one topic, such as a medical condition (e.g., Diabetes, Heart Disease) or an aspect of care (Care of Children, Behavioral Health). Each KSA has 60 questions to be completed, with a passing score of 80% required. You can take this as many times as needed to achieve the passing threshold. After answering each question, you will receive a critique and set of references to support your learning. For each KSA, you will receive 10 certification points and 8 CME credits.

Fall Schedule

Fall Conference Information

MAFP Visits Hattiesburg Residency

Your MAFP traveled to Hattiesburg last week to meet with the residents of the Forrest General Hospital Family Medicine Residency Program to discuss the guidelines for tobacco cessation. This training is part of the grant the MAFP Foundation administers from the Department of Health. The goal of the project is to implement the U.S. Public Health Services Guidelines for Treating Tobacco Use and Dependence by reaching as many family physicians in the state. Our hope is to increase tobacco screenings and medical provider referrals for cessation services.  Our thanks to Jonathan Hontzasm DNP, NP-C, who serves as the Director of ACT Center for Tobacco Treatment, Education and Research for presenting the information to the residents.  MAFP Outreach and Grant Coordinator Sharon Holmes will visit each residency before June 30, 2024. 

A Champion for Primary Care Retires

As bad as we hate to see her go, the MAFP was happy to serve as the host site for the retirement party for Wahnee Sherman, Executive Director of the MS Rural Physicians Scholarship Program. Wahnee has truly been a friend to the MAFP and a champion for family medicine.  

She has help share the message of the need for more primary care doctors in rural areas and the scholarship program has continued to be successful under her leadership. 

Thank you Wahnee for all you have done for family medicine in Mississippi. We wish you the very best. 

Mark your Calendars Now for

Upcoming MAFP Events