- President's Message
- WAPA Board Happenings
- WAPA Winter Conference - January 26-30, 2008
- Elections: Call for Candidates
- Shivering Start at Semihamoo - 2007 WAPA Annual Fall Conference
- Call to Action: Medical Mission to Haiti
- Student Happenings
- WAPA Past President Elected to Shoreline City Council
- Membership Matters
- Welcome New WAPA Members
- NCCPA Honored With Georgia Oglethorpe Award
- WAPA Member Passing
- CME Calendar
Send
comments regarding the WAPA Monitor or email address changes to
WAPA.
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The number of uninsured people in the Untied States is one of the major health care priorities facing us all. I would refer you to the AAPA news article written September 30, 2007, Vol.28, No. 17. The overall number of people who do not have health insurance rose to 47 million. A negative
trend occurring is a reduction in health care insurance as a percentage
of those covered by employers across the country. In 2006, 59.7% is
a slight reduction from 2005. Both percentage and number of children
under 18 who did not have insurance increased in 2006 to 11.7% and
8.7 million children in poverty going without coverage. The Census
Bureau reported that just over 19 % of children in poverty were without
coverage. |
The impact of a lack of health insurance was a recent Seattle Times article citing the costs; lack of health insurance when it comes to Emergency care. The times article cited a report by King County’s Harbor View Medical Center which outlined a $200 Million dollar shortfall that on traumatic care for the uninsured. So this begs the question- Who does pay? Certainly the money comes from state and county taxes, so a sort of socialized medicine exists which is not budgeted for. In addition, there is a proposal to reduce Medicare payment by 10.1 % starting in 2008. Increasing costs and unsustainable rate of rise of health care costs have led to this proposal. This will force some physician groups to turn away our Medicare and Medicaid patients.
How do these numbers and health care issues affect us as PA’s? More importantly how do these stunning numbers affect the uninsured? We as Physician Assistants have always advocated for our ability to reduce costs, improve access to care, and improve patient satisfaction. In 2007 and 2008 as WAPA president, I will be participating in lobbying efforts to support initiatives proposed by WSMA and AAPA. In February I will be traveling to Washington DC and participating in AAPA’s “Adventures in Lobbying”. This is an effort to support AAPA and those initiatives at a national level. In our state, WSMA has a day of lobbying at the capital on February 3rd and 4th, 2008. For more information on this lobbying event, visit WSMA at their website: www.wsma.org.
I would like to encourage
any PA to support the efforts of WAPA, WSMA and AAPA. Whether or not
you are conservative or liberal, one cannot
deny the satisfaction in helping a fellow human being in need. If you
are not a member of WAPA, consider supporting your academy PA’s.
Join those who, just like you, want to provide care regardless of what
insurance card the patient presents with. To join WAPA just go to:www.WAPA.com.
Back to the top
by
Eugene W Partridge MPAS, PA-C
Ever wonder what the WAPA board is doing in between it’s quarterly
board meetings? Here is what is on the fore front for legislative issue’s
and our To Do list if you will: Dale Sanderson PA-C is working with the
WAPA board on the inability of PA’s to practice Psychiatry in the
private sector due to reimbursement issues. The board, with the help
of WSMA and AAPA’s Michael Powe, have drafted a letter to be submitted
to these payors. We will educate and overturn current policies. Currently,
these payors will only reimburse psychiatrist, psychologists and psychiatric
ARNP’s. Once the letters go out, we have to be prepared to defend
our platform and continue to educate. Perhaps a future visit with the
insurance commissioner or even legislative action will be needed.
For those PA’s who do practice where payment is not an issue (state and federal) PA’s still cannot sign forms for guardianship. We will be working with the legislature to change the language in the WAC code to facilitate this.
Former WAPA Presidents Linda Dale PA-C (also the Western PA rep to the AAPA) and Monica Morrison PA-C (also the web site development chair) attend monthly meetings at WSMA’s Interspecialty Council meeting. These meetings are held on one Saturday per month. Do you have anything to do on one Saturday per month? We would love more PA volunteers at these meetings. Your voice and attendance will assist us with our legislative efforts. It is also a great opportunity for you to network with WSMA physicians to strengthen our Physician-PA team. Currently, we are working on the psychiatric reimbursement concerns. What better way to spend one Saturday a month, then to spend it with your peers and support and represent your profession.
Pending is the Winter CME. This is acknowledged nationally as one of the finest board reviews in the nation. Julie Atchely PA-C is our CME coordinator and always has an open ear for comments and suggestions you might have. The Western Regional Meeting (WRM) will support the PA’s from the 11 western states. This is put on by Linda Dale, PA-C with the organizational help of the board, the CME committee and immediate past president Theresa Vance PA-C.
In the next newsletter, look for updates on legislative issues, about
the 5 Regional Chairs that serve WAPA and our liaisons that support the
WSMA and about Sandie James PA-C efforts as membership chair.
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to the top
January 26-30, 2008 is WAPA's 19th Annual Recertification Review Course and Winter Conference will be at the Doubletree Hotel, Seattle Airport location. WAPA will also be hosting the Western Regional Meeting at this time. Please join us and mark your calendar.
We will be offering the following workshops:
The In's
and Out's of Joint Injection, Primary Care Neurology Exam Skills, ABC's
of EKG's, XYZ's of EKG's and IUD Insertion.
For a full schedule of
lectures, speakers, and a registration form, click
here.
Back
to the top
The
WAPA Elections Committee is looking for nominations for the upcoming
WAPA fiscal year. The 2008 fiscal year is from July 1, 2008 - June 30,
2009.
If you are a current WAPA member and interested in running for a WAPA position
or know of a PA who is interested, please contact the WAPA office at: Tel: (206)
956-3624 or 1-800-552-0612 ext. 3006; Fax (206) 441-5863; Email: LMK@WSMA.org.
A job description for each position will be emailed/faxed or mailed to you.
The following WAPA Board of Director's positions are open to current WAPA Members:
President: a three-year commitment/term (1 year as the President Elect, 1 year
as the President, 1 year as the Immediate Past President).
Region 2 Director: a two-year term (Region 2 is the Yakima, Tri-cities area)
Region 4 Director: a two-year term (Region 4 is the Seattle/Tacoma area)
2 Year AAPA Delegate (you must be an AAPA member and a WAPA member to run for
this position)
Three, 1 year AAPA Delegates (you must be an AAPA member and a WAPA member to
run for this position)
If you have any questions, please contact Linda at the WAPA office.
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One
hundred and forty-five PAs attended the 2007 Annual Fall Conference
held at Resort Semiahmoo in Blaine from October 4-6, 2007. This year,
there were out-of-state PAs attending from Alaska, Arizona, California,
Florida, Idaho, Kentucky, Montana, New Mexico, New York, Oklahoma,
Oregon, Texas and Washington! The presenters on Thursday were Drs. David Elkayam (Why Am I Still Coughing) and (Anaphylaxis); Jeffrey L. Grice (Pelvic Mass Management in Primary Care) and (Cervical Cancer: From Pap to Vaccine); Doug Paauw (Dermatology Case Studies) and Practical Pearls for Primary Care); William Lombardi (Update on Hypertension Management 2007); and David Spach (HIV Update for the Primary Care Provider). On Friday, the presenters were Dr. Brad Felker (Smoking Cessation Strategies) and (What to Consider when Treating Bipolar Disorder in Primary Care); Mr. Michael L. Powe (Reimbursement: What Every PA Needs to Know); Dr. Gary Goldfogel (Updates in Laboratory Medicine); Dr. Gary Franklin (Occupational Health Best Practices); and Dr. Ina Oppliger (Office Management of OA and RA) The concluding lectures on Saturday were presented by Mr. Shane Spears, PA-C (Lung Cancer: What Does It Mean?), Mr. Gary Beerman, PA-C (Cosmetic Dermatology…It’s Not Just For Barbie); Dr. Brad J. Wallum (Diabetes Update 2007; Controversies and Practical Issues), and Dr. Chia Wang (Here are the Clues, Make the Diagnosis). The guest speaker for the Thursday evening dinner program was Dr. David Spach, MD, who spoke on, “Update in Adult Immunizations.” The program was sponsored by Merck. The guest speaker for the Friday evening dinner program was Dr. David Elkayam, MD, whose talk was entitled “Best Asthma Management for 2007.” The event was sponsored by TEVA. |
In addition to being one of the best attended conferences that WAPA has presented, each and every speaker did an excellent job in their oral presentation.
The annual 5K PA fun run/walk again started, as always, in the pitch black darkness of night. The stillness and tranquility of the early morning hour in the parking lot was rudely interrupted by the chattering of teeth as the shivering runners and walkers gathered, staggered, and looked for the starting line. Compared to previous 5 k runs, this year’s course was easy. Just follow the asphalt path that led past the peaceful waters of Puget Sound and ended at a gated residential area. Easy, right? Well, not if you’re running in the dark on frozen limbs. Bringing up the rear, as usual, I was guided by the sounds ahead of me of chattering enamel, and explicative’s such as, “what in the #*%$ was that” as an unidentified nocturnal critter scurried out of the way of the thundering and terrified foot steps of the oncoming flock. You could almost feel the primeval fear that was held, momentarily, in the chilly clutches of the early morning air. I was also aware of an arctic blast of wind that had suddenly decided to join the runners. Running in the dark is bad enough, but in an arctic gale?
The lead runners had reached the gate, turned around and were now going at the speed of sound as they headed for home; spurred on by their now warm bodies, and the smell of freshly brewed coffee that wafted through their thoughts. My thoughts at this point in time are not printable. In fact I had no thoughts, my brain was frozen, ice crystals had formed around my mouth, my ears had dropped off my head somewhere along the path, and my hands were merely decorative appendages on a body that continually screamed at me, saying, “why, why, why, do you do this every fall? I had no answer.
Meanwhile, I continued to walk, gaining, maybe, an inch or so with each foot step. A footstep that no longer made any sound, as frozen feet are incapable of producing a thud, except for perhaps the muted words, “why, why, why!”
The last
of us finally reached the gate, turned around and hobbled back to the
finish line, jeered on now by the little critters
that had originally
scurried out of our way but who were now holding their sides in merciless
glee. I heard one say as I went by, “didn’t I see you a few
years ago? You sure don’t learn very fast, do you? In frustration,
I tried to kick the little fellow, but was prevented from doing so by a
leg that was unable to respond. It refused to move, merely looked in the
direction of the little critter, and continued on its own, headed for the
warmth of the resort. I had no choice but to follow. I’ll see you
again next fall for the 5 K run.
Again, the drawings held during the breaks for medical textbooks still
remain one of the highlights of the conference. In addition, the following
pharmaceutical companies were very instrumental in helping defray the
cost of the conference by sponsoring a number of the speakers and providing
grant money. Gold sponsors: GlaxcoSmithKline, Merck, and TEVA. Silver:
Abbott, AstraZeneca and Pfizer. Bronze: Dey, Gilead, Schering Plough,
and Sepracor.
The conference ended on Saturday at 12:15 p.m. A WAPA Board meeting followed
the end of the conference.
I want to thank all of you who attended the fall conference and made it
a success. I hope to see you again at the 19th Annual WAPA 2007 Winter
Recertification Review Course and Winter Conference that will be held at
the Seattle Airport Doubletree Hotel, from January 26 - 30, 2008. The 2008
WAPA Fall Conference will be at the Davenport Hotel in Spokane, from October
2-4, 2008.
Back
to the top
by
Kendra Galiano PA-C
Myself & couple
of co-workers will be going on a medical mission to a remote area of
Haiti on 2/16-2/24/08. We have enough ancillary staff
for our mission but we are WAY understaffed for healthcare providers.
Please help!
There is no fancy hotel, no AC, no maintained road, maybe electricity & maybe running water. We will probably be staying in a rectory or a local officials house during our stay. Food, shelter & local transportation is provided for you. You would need to purchase your airfare to/from Port-Au-Prince as well as pay for the puddle jumper flight (about $200) to Jeremie. Then, if it was like last time, we will ride in the back of pickup trucks sitting on top of gear while driving over rough roads to our village destination. PA's, NP's & docs will be seeing patients with our translators, while the nurses and medics will be triaging & helping with procedures. Last year, we were seeing about 100 pts per day and we will work everyday except travel days. This mission is funded by the Catholic Church. No, you don't have to be Catholic or even religious for that matter but you should be respectful of customs and they do pray & sing before every meal. The trip is tax deductible & you will be given a Tax ID & receipt for your travel expenses. The Catholic Church has been running these medical missions to Haiti for many years & are well established with the local people.
Now mind you, it's rough sweaty work. It's chaos. Some of these people are S-I-C-K. Haiti is the poorest nation in the northern hemisphere. Yes, even poorer than Bangladesh or Mongolia. You will see patients with end stage starvation, cerebral malaria, typhoid, goiters the size of softballs, intestinal parasites, active TB, & new diagnosis of HIV as well as the more common pains & trials of third world living conditions. The people are very sweet, humble and very grateful.
You need to be able to think outside the box & be very flexible.
If you can commit or you have any further questions please email me at kgaliano@hotmail.com
STUDENT
AFFAIRS COMMITTEE
Leanne Brink, PA-C
Student Affairs Committee Representative
Congratulations to the new WAPA student representatives, Chris Heim-Seattle
class 41, Neil Lewis-Yakima class 14 and James Garcia-Spokane class 11.
Welcome to the WAPA Board.
We also want to congratulate all the elected student class officers Angela
Clements, Jeremy Waldie, Mark Buescher, Thomas York, Jose Fuentez, Chris
Rieman, Bronwyn Slobogean, Malynda Calkins, Doug Stewart, Jodi Stickler-Ivie,
Christie Young, Sean Shipley, Ana Montoya, Lily Hughes, Molly Smyth,
Joel Quiroz, Misty Gorum, Brian Timm, Chad Tiller, Sarah Bigelow, John
Spitler, Cory Anderson, Lisa Russell, Sydney Johnstone, Stephanie Bennett,
Terra Bilodeaux, Karla Clinger, Daniel Lipson, Amber Morrison, Ben Pate
and Jami Benzel. We know you will serve your classmates well. We are
excited for you to begin your adventurous career as Physician Assistants.
ATTENTION: The Spokane class is selling a t-shirt they designed on their
Ebay store. Click
here to order the shirt.
MEDEX UPDATE
by Donald
Coerver, PhD, PA-C
On the 23rd of September
WAPA sponsored the annual picnic for the incoming Spokane MEDEX students,
class 11 which started classes here on the 17th
of September.
Approximately 40 people dined on fried chicken, potato salad, beans and
cake. A mixture of new juniors, seniors, faculty, and physician assistants
from the community enjoyed a mild Fall day at Comstock Park and a good
time was had by all.
On the 1st
of November the Medical Reserve Corp (MRC) in conjunction with the
Spokane Regional Health District (SPHD) conducted a city wide
bioterrorism exercise. Two Points of Dispensing (PODS) were utilized.
The two PODS were located at Spokane Falls Community College and Spokane
Community College. MEDEX Spokane class 11 was divided between the two
PODS and did patient education for flu vaccine immunizations concurrently
with the exercise.
In addition to the PODS, a triage exercise was conducted at a Community
Emergency Health Clinic (CEHC) for the purpose of testing a triage system
that might be
implemented during a Pandemic Flu Outbreak. As part of the Medical Reserve Corp
(MRC), Don Coerver PA-C participated in this exercise. As a triage officer, using
a prototypical triage form, PA Coerver assessed “mock” patients dispersing
them to home or higher levels of care.
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|
WSMA member Terry Scott, PA-C was elected to the Shoreline City Council in the November 6th elections. Terry, a University of Washington faculty member in the School of Medicine, has lived in Shoreline with his wife Lyanne and their four children for almost a decade. He is a former president of the Washington State Academy of Physician Assistants, and has served on committees at the local and national level, including the UW Graduate Medical Education Committee, School of Medicine Curriculum Committee, Dean’s Strategic Leadership Conference, Washington Delegate to the American Academy of Physician Assistants House of Delegates, and the Washington Academy of Physician Assistants Health Policy Council. |
Back to the top
by
Sandie James, PA-C
The Fall Conference at Semi-Ah-Moo Resort in Blaine was just incredible!
The CME was informative and helpful, and there were many PAs from several
states. I always marvel at a room full of Physician Assistants: I find
it makes me proud to be in a room full of dedicated health care providers
that love the same profession that I do. We all face slightly different
patients in different settings, but we are committed to being the very
best we can be for those who trust us for their medical care.
Membership numbers
are stable, but not where I would like to see them! Here’s
the breakdown:
Fellows 452
Colleagues 219
Students 93
Sustaining 33
Affiliates 18
Out-of-state 134
There are approximately 2200 Physician Assistants in our state, licensed to practice medicine under our excellent practice laws. We ALL benefit from our laws, our watchful lobbying efforts, those who work to improve reimbursement rates for the hard work we do.
However, only about a third of us contribute to those efforts with our membership dues. I would hope that if you know of a colleague that is not a member of WAPA, that you could take the time to encourage them to join.
Are we a perfect organization? No.
Do we please everyone with what we do for all of us? No.
Are we excellent at communication? No.
Do we have good leaders that do their very best, volunteering hours
and hours of time to protect and promote our profession? YES!
Does each Board member contribute their talents to making our State
Academy the very best it can be? YES!
WAPA has
four meetings a year that are open to all members. The next is at
the Winter Conference in Seattle on January 27, from 5:30 to
8:30 pm at the Doubletree Hotel, Seattle Airport.
I encourage you to attend to see how your leaders operate, to ask questions,
to get answers, make comments, or just be there to see the process
in action. WAPA is YOUR organization, and we need YOUR input to make
our Academy the very best in the country.
I dare you to be there!
Welcome to the following new WAPA members! We have more power to accomplish affirmative action when there are more of us. Numbers speak loudly! Thanks to each of you from the WAPA Board. I look forward to meeting you! If I have omitted your name from this list, please contact me at jamesgang80@yahoo.com or call at 509-738-2031. Be aware that this list contains not only brand new members of WAPA, but those members who have rejoined after a period of time.
| Robert Johansen, Affiliate | Bethany Carroll PA-S |
| Mandi Bainton PA-S | Kevin Kuwada |
| Kate Maurer | Joshua Mayes |
| Dan Osborne | Ben Pate PA-S |
| Mary Sauer | Robert Schallee |
| Frank Sirna, ou-of-state | Bronwyn Slobogean PA-S |
| Theresa Vonada, out-of-state | Heather Whitaker |
| Derek Whitehall | Terrence Yearty, out-of-state |
| Christine Young PA-S | Mark Buescher PA-S |
| Scott Ely PA-S | Rosanne DeAngelis, out-of-state |
| Edward Gumm, out-of-state | Dick Halbur, out-of-state |
| Pete Hall | Brian Hiller PA-S |
| Ellen Judd, out-of-state | Lyn Kucij, out-of-state |
| Mathew Kummerfeldt | Karen Nguyen |
| David Oliver | Sandra Pineros |
| Saubia Saeed | Douglas Walker |
| Neil Wiegand | Mike Zosel |
| Jamie Benzel PA-S | Ted Branstetter |
| Sally Brown, out-of-state | Meralee Byker |
| Stephen Casowitz PA-S | Leslie Chamberlain |
| Alison Chromy PA-S | Ryan Dirks |
| James Garcia PA-S | Richard Hedrick PA-S |
| Jeanette Kotch PA-S | Stephen Laughlin, out-of-state |
| Jennifer Nance PA-S | James O’Neal |
| Caulda Pope | Chris Rieman PA-0S |
| Lisa Roberts | Erin Saunders |
| Kerry Scarvie | Emily Sellers-Subocz |
| Kira Vader | G R Bossert, out-of-state |
| Christopher Campbell | Calista Comstock PA-S |
| Jodi Dalgen PA-S | Roland Donisi, out-of-state |
| Jennifer Endeson PA-S | Sierra Farris |
| Amanda Friese | Arthur Griffin |
| Mark Grimmett | Patricia Hernandez |
| Barbara Holloway | Sydney Johnstone PA-S |
| April May | JoDee Rundall, out-of-state |
| Lisa Russell PA-S | Damanjot Sangha |
| Wen-Yee Shaw | Susan Silva |
| Molly Smyth PA-S | Jodi Stickler PA-S |
| Michael Zinser | Joy Becker |
| Stephanie Bennett PA-S | Kevin Cardwell |
| Amanda Clark PA-S | Allen Ellsworth |
| Deborah Fisher | Keith Guess, out-of-state |
| Curt Haugen, out-of-state | Kathleen Kollmar |
| William Krum, out-of-state | Stephen Lenssen PA-S |
| Jenna Newcomb PA-S | Chad Perry |
| Joel Quiroz PA-S | Margurite Staab |
| Carri Berkhof, out-of-state | Alice Burden PA-S |
| Jeffery Fernandez | Jose Fuentez PA-S |
| Aline Heggem-Snow | Brandy Manchester PA-S |
| Michael Marshall | Kenneth Miller PA-S |
| Caroline Stampfli |
NCCPA was honored with the GEORGIA OGLETHORPE AWARD FOR PERFORMANCE EXCELLENCE. The board received this award at the Stead History Center in Durham, NC. on Friday November 9th. It was very exciting to be recognized in this way as this prestigious award has never before been awarded to a non-profit organization, nor to a first applicant. We are very proud of the staff of NCCPA for their excellence and commitment to our profession. Janet Lathrop is the President and CEO. Washington PA's on the board are: Ruth Ballweg, Ed Lopez and Ellen Harder. Dr. John Coombs from the UW Medical School and a Pediatrician will join the NCCPA Board in January, 2008.
Click here for an article in that appeared in the Everett Herald about recently deceased WAPA member Joan Albro, PA-C.
| January 26 -30, 2008 |
| 19th Annual Recertification Review Course and Winter Conference |
| Seattle Airport Doubletree Hotel |
| FMI: Contact the WAPA office at 1-800-552-0612 ext. 3006 or email lmk@wsma.org |
| October 2-4, 2008 |
| WAPA's Annual Fall Conference |
| Davenport Hotel, Spokane, WA |
| FMI: Contact the WAPA office at 1-800-552-0612 ext. 3006 or email lmk@wsma.org |
|
WAPA is sensitive
to privacy issues with respect to the use of member e-mail
information. WAPA does not sell or rent e-mail addresses. © 2007 WAPA. All rights reserved. Toll-free: 1-800-552-0612 Ext. 3006 Web Site: http://www.wapa.com E-mail WAPA |