Time for the 2013 Active Member Survey

Take Mrs. Dole's words to heart!  Your input is vital in guiding the Board, committees and staff in their efforts to represent Illinois family medicine and meet their needs.  Please set aside 10-15 minutes and complete the online survey by July 26.

Click here to access the survey

Call for Board and Officer Nominations

The Leadership Development Task Force is seeking nominations for the IAFP board of directors. Please send a cover email indicating willingness to serve, a resume and answers to the following questions:

 1.     Identify areas where you have skills, experience or interest (such as finance, public relations, health information technology, CME, GME, and/or government relations).

2.     Describe how you can help IAFP further its mission.

Please submit your letter of intention and your CV to IAFP Executive Vice President Vincent D. Keenan, CAE at vkeenan@iafp.com by Friday, August 2. We have three board slots for the class of 2016 (three-year term) and we are seeking a New Physician board member (less than seven years in practice) for a two-year term.  Nominations will also be accepted for the positions of 2^nd Vice President, 1^st Vice President, President-elect, and one Alternate Delegate and one Delegate to the AAFP Congress of Delegates (two-year terms).

 Questions? Contact David Hagan, MD, chair of the Leadership Development Task Force at djhmd80@yahoo.com or IAFP Executive Vice President Vince Keenan vkeenan@iafp.com.  

Now put that annual meeting on your calendar and register

Annual Meeting - 2013 a.k.a. SAM-a-Rama!

Leadership, Inspiration, Collaboration, Celebration & Camaraderie

November 7-9 at the Hilton Lisle/Naperville

More information is at www.iafp.com

IAFP is dedicating more of our annual meeting to providing those SAMs workshops that family physicians need.  Stay current and tackle these tough issues in an interactive group setting with your family physician colleagues.  Our meeting is centrally located in DuPage County - easy to access and with FREE parking so that Chicago residents can enjoy the benefits of parking without paying!  Check out the schedule and download a registration form here.  

EHR Medicaid Meaningful Use Update

If your attestation passes the adjudication requirements, the Department of Healthcare and Family Services (DHFS) will process your payment. There are currently 1,200-1,300 physicians in the queue for payment.

1. If you are called by DHFS, please respond.  They are trying to process your attestation for payment.
2. Check your status online on MEDI in the EHR application.
3. If your status has not changed, contact the EHR Adjudication Unit for assistance: 217/782-5565 *3236 for Kevin Miller *3234 for Amanda Wanless *3237 for Veronica Schulz-Lehr *3235 for Mecky Lang    

The Illinois Department of Healthcare & Family Services (HFS) has started processing payments for all Adopt, Implement, or Upgrade (AIU) and Meaningful Use attestations.

REMINDER:  If you are planning to attest to Medicare for the 2013 attestation year HFS strongly recommends you do NOT switch to the Medicare program until your 2012 Medicaid attestation is adjudicated.  Changing programs will cancel your Medicaid attestation and your 2012 Incentive payment.  Please direct questions and concerns to the EHR Payment Incentive Program support email,hfs.ehrincentive@illinois.gov.  

July Lunch & Learn: Integrated Medication Management in Primary Care

Presented by: Mark Loafman, MD, Assistant Professor of Family and Community Medicine, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine

Thursday, July 25, 2013, 12:00-1:00pm CST

Learning Objectives:

- Articulate how integrating clinical pharmacy services into an inter-professional care team can effectively overcome systems barriers to optimal care for patients with chronic conditions, with immediate results.

 - Translate the lessons learned from teamwork and accountability which are now commonly used in acute "rescue" care and complex, advance stage service lines to achieve the same level of accountability for primary and secondary prevention and treatment "upstream".

 - Describe the opportunities for, and approach to, achieving truly accountable care in both the patient centered medical home and the accompanying "medical neighborhood," or community of practice.

Register Online

Saint Louis University Family Medicine Grand Rounds

Wednesday, July 17th -- 7:30am

"Health Outcomes in the St. Louis Region - The Influence of Economics, Race and Geography"

Henry Webber, MPP, Executive Vice Chancellor for Administration 

Washington University 

SSM St. Mary's Health Center - Kohler Auditorium on 2nd Floor

AMA & AAFP CME Credit - Continental breakfast served

For more information, contact:  Cathy Lee Jung, Program Coordinator

Saint Louis University Family Medicine Residency
Phone:  314-951-7230  Email:  cjung2@slu.edu  http://familymedicine.slu.edu/residency

Dive into the Gene Pool: Integrating Genetics and Genomics into Your Pediatric Primary Care Practice

August 9-10, 2013  Swissôtel Chicago

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) designates this live activity for a maximum of 11.25 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

Co-sponsored by the American Academy of Pediatrics and the National Coalition for Health Professional Education in Genetics (NCHPEG)

Don't Miss This First-Ever AAP CME Course on Genetics!  Register today at www.pedialink.org/cmefinder

Dive into the Gene Pool is a live, 1½-day course dedicated to providing primary care pediatric professionals with the knowledge, skills, and tools needed to integrate genetics into their everyday practice. Link to more information, including learning objectives.

August Lunch and Learn  Thursday, August 29, 2013, 12:00-1:00pm CST

Malpractice Claims & Risk Management Update - Family Practice

Presented by: Laurette Salzman, MBA, CPHRM, Senior Risk Management Consultant, ProAssurance Companies

Learning Objectives:

Participation in this seminar will better enable participants to:

-       Examine claims data specific to family practice;

-       Discuss current & emerging trends;

-       List and apply practical skills when disclosing adverse outcomes

-       Implement loss prevention strategies designed for the office practice setting.

Register Online

NRCME DOT Training

October 12 from 7:45 am-12:30pm

Adler Auditorium at the Genesis Heart Institute

Davenport, Iowa 

Register Online

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has established a National Registry of Certified Medical Examiners with requirements that all medical examiners who conduct physical examinations for interstate commercial motor vehicle drivers must complete a training course and pass a certification examination prior to May 21, 2014. Please contact the Iowa AFP at 515-283-9370 with questions.  Check out their ad with details

New AAFP PQRS Reporting Tool Available 

CMS wants your opinion (on your Medicare Admin Contractor)!

Coming to a website near you! CMS will soon be launching the new Medicare Administrative Contractor (MAC) Satisfaction Indicator (MSI), an instrument that measures provider satisfaction with your MAC. Registration is required if you would like to take the MSI. The random sample will be drawn from the registry. To register and obtain more information, go to:  http://www.cms.gov/medicare/medicare-contracting/MSI/

Save the Date:  Thursday, September 19, 2013 from 8:00 am to 1:00 pm

Navigating Through the Marketplace: A Positive Direction for Quality Healthcare in Illinois

Don't miss this opportunity to learn the latest information on what will drive quality healthcare through the Marketplaces on a national and state level.

Metropolitan Chicago Healthcare Council Conference Center

222 South Riverside Plaza, 19th Floor Chicago, IL 60606

$35 Registration Fee (Breakfast and Lunch Included)

Additional Information and RSVP Available Soon!

Sponsored by: Automated Health Systems/Illinois Health Connect

For additional information contact: Paula Osman/Project Coordinator   posman@automated-health.com

Application for CME credit has been filed with the American Academy of Family Physicians. Determination of credit is pending.

If you have a news item to share, email it to Ginnie Flynn at gflynn@iafp.com.

Deb Clements, MD was featured in the Chicago Tribune July 1 about her new title as the first program director of the upcoming Northwestern McGaw Family Medicine Residency at Lake Forest Hospital. She recently joined Northwestern University - Feinberg School of Medicine as the new chair of the department of Family Medicine.

Kathy Asbury, MD is quoted in the Quincy Herald-Whig July 9 article on a relatively new and scary phenomenon of inhaling or smoking alcohol under the belief that one can get drunk without ingesting the calories.    Not only is the practice dangerous, but the no-calorie belief is false. Fortunately, Dr. Asbury reports that they haven't seen this surface in Quincy yet.  

Joseph Welty, MD of Dixon is featured in the Sauk Valley News on July 4 along with his sons for their dedication to distance running, including the Dixon annual Reagan Run.  They have also run the Boston Marathon, including this year when explosions rocked the finish line, injuring hundreds of spectators.

On July 8 John Lee, MD was quoted in the in State Journal-Register in an article on the benefits of controlling your blood pressure and cholesterol levels in reducing heart attack risk.  Aaron Michelfelder, MD is quoted in this month's Men's Health magazine on that same topic. 

2013 Assembly in San Diego | Get Connected, Up-to-date, and Inspired

Assembly is our opportunity to start family medicine's bright future. It's our time to share solutions and insight with other family physicians. And this year in San Diego promises to be the best yet. Join thousands of your colleagues for the 2013 AAFP Scientific Assembly, September 24-28, in San Diego.

See Assembly firsthand in this brief video shot onsite last year.

Take five days to learn, connect, and be inspired. Choose from 300-plus CME sessions and many other innovative ways to learn, share, and grow.

Register by August 21 to save up to $100.*                  

*This offer does not apply to Students, Residents, Inactive, or Life members.