| |
Spokane County Medical Society
Member Benefits
PROFESSIONAL
BENEFITS:
-
Consolidated Hospital
Credentialing
-
Medical, Dental, Life &
Disability Insurance Plans
-
Strengthening referrals to
Spokane through Regional Research/Regional Collaborations
-
Peer Review Investigation
-
Litigation Prevention
(Public Grievance Arbitration)
-
Ethical Reviews
-
Physician Wellness
Committee
-
Patient and Physician
Referral (Over 1,000 yearly)
MEMBER
SERVICES:
-
Major focus on eliminating
onerous contract clauses & educating members on their intricacies
-
Working on reducing
transactional costs in medicine
-
Educating & implementing
community-wide EMTALA & HIIPA regulations
-
Physician Leadership
Training: negotiating, lobbying, media relations,
Internet, Palm and clinical quality improvement
-
Accreditation of all
regional Category One CME Conferences
-
Implemented a CME
Institute & sponsored 8 local Category One CME programs
-
Maintain retired
physician’s club activities
-
Organize and facilitate
the delegation that represents Spokane area physicians to the
WSMA House of Delegates
-
Conduct annual strategic
planning in order to insure representation of SCMS
-
Member
physicians in our County
-
Implementing
an SCMS Website (www.spcms.org)
and now Bulletin Boards
PUBLICATIONS:
PUBLIC RELATIONS:
-
Mini-Internship programs
for community leaders, legislators and decision makers
-
Maintain a “physicians in
the schools” roster for speaking and consultation
-
Provide team physicians
for all Spokane County high school football teams
-
Consult for media on
medical issues
MEDICAL
INFORMATICS:
-
Assisting physicians in
creating a city-wide information network for electronic medical records,
billing, coding & online eligibility
-
Conducting county-wide
Vendor Fair for practice management software vendors
-
Assisting members with
connectivity issues
LEGISLATIVE EFFORTS:
-
Pursuing funding of a Eastern Washington
health care market study
-
Achieved passage of a medical examiner bill
for Spokane County
-
Continuing our educational
work with the Director of the Department of Ecology regarding
grass and wheat burning in Spokane
-
Continued support for
universal access to health care, including appropriate funding
for the Basic Health Plan (#1 Legislative Priority)
-
Plugging away at
meaningful statewide liability reform
-
Continuing our efforts to
oppose legislation that increases the scope of practice for other health
care professional groups
-
Working on issues
surrounding the regulation of physician networks
-
Meet several times a year
with state & local legislators
|
|
MEDIA
RELATIONS:
-
Conduct
workshops for physicians on “how to” effectively deal with media
-
Conduct regular press
interviews on scientific, public health, and several statewide initiatives
-
Proactively represent MD’s
& their activities in our community
-
Media liaison with all
radio, TV, and newspapers
PUBLIC HEALTH:
-
Working on community wide
practice guidelines for obesity (others to follow)
-
Support countywide
fluoridation efforts
-
Formulation and
implementation of the Public Health Improvement Project
-
Implement a physician’s
speakers bureau
-
Maintaining our county
E-911 and EMS System
-
Formulating a “health
effects” statement on Wheat Stubble burning and its potential
impact on the people who live in our community and developing a press
release for the media
-
Advocating for community
wide Hepatitis A vaccination and vaccine funding
-
Advocating for
immunization priority during shortages
MEDICAL ECONOMICS:
-
Conducting educational
programs regarding contracting with health plans
-
Reviewing health plan
failures and market consolidation
-
Advocating for a single
statewide Geographical Practice Cost Index (GPCI)
-
Researching and advocating
for reimbursement for emergency care for Idaho Medicaid
-
Developing rules for
adoption by the Office of the Insurance Commissioner regarding
contract language and many other physician related issues
-
Meeting with health plan
executives quarterly
COLLEGIALITY:
-
Working toward an SCMS
Website “topical” Bulletin Board
-
Board of Trustees Member
in Doctors’ Lounges for discussions
-
Vice President attends
Leadership Spokane
-
Strengthened ties with
Chamber of Commerce
Washington State Medical Association Member Benefits
-
The Washington State
Medical Association (WSMA) offers a wide array of programs and services
that help improve the practice of medicine for our more than 9,000
members and their staff.
-
Advocating your
position - WSMA gives you a voice in the legislative
policymaking process, and the ability to affect change in Olympia and
Washington, D.C. The WSMA has an effective lobby and legal staff that
understands the myriad of issues, political rules and regulatory
processes confronting medicine today, and works hard to enact laws that
benefit physicians.
-
Practice Support
Services – WSMA helps you in your day-to-day practice, so you can
get back to what you do best – taking care of patients. Throughout the
year the WSMA provide practice support educational seminars on topics
such as coding, collections and employee satisfaction.
-
Professional
Development and Services – The WSMA works hard to represent your
interest on a professional level as well. Through our contract review
services and legal representation, we make sure our members have a voice
in the process. WSMA also provides valuable CME and leadership
training.
-
Promoting your
profession – The WSMA is the voice of physicians. Through our
media and public relations efforts, WSMA keep Washingtonians abreast of
the critical issues that impact physician practices and patient care.
To learn more about the
WSMA works on your behalf, go to
http://www.wsma.org/memresouRces/what.html
|
