As many of you no doubt have noted, Newton Medical Group has recently joined the modern world by adding a Public Relations / Marketing section to its operation. We are very proud of the work that Hasina Anderson (Director of Public Relations) and Karin Konstan (Account Manager) are doing, and hope that your interactions with them and the rest of Newton Medical Group has been to your satisfaction.

The foray into a more proactive approach stemmed from our recognition of two factors: (1) we have not been "out in the field" or as visible to the referral community over the past few years as we might have been, and (2) we appreciate your referrals and want to keep you updated on our group.  We recognize that there is a substantially smaller pool of evaluations out there in the post SB899 era and we decided to do more in the way of broadcasting our capabilities, strengths, and decades' worth of experience. Our goal is to keep you fully informed about Newton Medical Group resources, clinicians and services through the use of our website, newsletter and PR staff.

Because we are stepping into what might be considered an "advertising" pond more directly than ever before I thought it would be useful to take a moment and assure you that NMG has done its legal homework with respect to the many DIR regulations that govern these kinds of activities.  You may have noted an " * " (asterisk) in all NMG advertising and print materials wherein we state "The use of the term AME refers to past use of NMG doctors in that capacity at the request of referring parties in the community. Per applicable California Labor Code and Regulatory provisions, there is no claim or representation that any NMG doctor has an ongoing appointment as an AME" That is our acknowledgment of California Labor Code sections that specifically prohibit presenting an appearance or impression that the advertiser has an ongoing appointment as an AME. Thus, I've insisted on the " * " to show that NMG is absolutely not claiming that any of its clinicians have an ongoing appointment as an AME, but rather simply remarking upon its experience.

We considered having an Open House, and in our ever cautious fashion wondered whether it was conceivable that providing some snacks could ran afoul of any advertising regulations.  After receiving the good news that an informational gathering alone does not break any rules, we are now happy to invite you to our Oakland office on March 24, 2009.  We hope to see you there!