A new self-study series from the AAFP’s EveryONE Project gives family physicians and others the opportunity to earn more than 14 CME credits as they learn about diversity, equity, and inclusion through 34 video sessions. The Health Equity for EveryONE series launched Dec. 8 with sessions that range in length from 15 minutes to more than an hour.
Reprinted with permission from AAFP.
The Georgia Academy of Family Physicians (GAFP) wishes to congratulate Katie Lively (Medical College of Georgia, Southwest Clinical Campus), Michael Brackett and Zachary Harrison (both at the Medical College of Georgia – Augusta University Campus) whom our medical student body membership has elected as their 2023 representatives to the Board of Directors, and to Shant Ohanian, Amanda Lilley, and Tucker Hickox (all at the Medical College of Georgia, Athens campus) who were elected as Student Director Alternate Board members.
Lively
Katie Lively states that, as a budding family physician and lifelong Georgia resident, she is very eager to serve on the GAFP Medical Student Board of Directors and represent student voices while further developing as a leader in family medicine. Through this experience she believes that she will become better familiarized with the inner workings of GAFP and learn how to effectively collaborate with other members and entities to influence advancements in practice, patient care, and health equity.
Brackett
Michael Brackett says that he has lived in Georgia his entire life and has personally seen the intense need for primary care. He has also unfortunately seen so many of his classmates gravitate away from primary care for various reasons. As a third-year student, he believes fostering interest in Family Medicine is a topic that their six member positions could really focus on and have direct experience with. He will work hard in this position to continue improving student interest in family medicine.
Harrison
Zachary Harrison noted that he recently completed his 3rd year clinical rotations and fell in love with Family Medicine, declaring it as his specialty of choice. He is particularly passionate about advocating for our patients at both a personal and system-wide level, ensuring all Georgians have equitable access to high-quality, affordable care. He is interested in participating on the GAFP Board to advocate for Family Medicine in our state and provide a physician-in-training’s perspective on the challenges facing the profession.
Ohanian
Shant Ohanian says that he has been looking for every opportunity to learn and grow as a future family physician. He attended the GAFP annual CME meeting this year and listened in on the Board of Directors meeting and Congress of Delegates. He believes in the power of enthusiastic physician leadership in medicine. He plans to be engaged at the state and National level later in his career and is eager to begin this journey now as a student! He believes he can bring a new and fresh perspective to the GAFP both as a student and newcomer to family medicine.
Lilley
Amanda Lilley is really interested in advocating for her peers and for the population. A big part of their curriculum is small group learning, which gives students the chance to apply what they are learning to real situations. Through these cases, important conversations are started, such as how they would treat a patient who cannot afford medications or therapy, or how to handle emotional cases such as the death of a patient. They have also discussed in some part health policy, which affects drug costs, mandatory reporting laws for interpersonal violence, Medicaid qualifications, and more.
Hickox
Tucker Hickox says that as an aspiring family medicine physician from rural north Georgia, he has always intended to return to his mountain town and start a practice one day. He has seen firsthand how a doctor in a small town naturally finds themselves in a leadership position and the outsized positive impact that confers. Serving his community in north Georgia is his foremost intention, and the opportunity to see what physician leadership at the state level looks like would be invaluable to his aspirations.
Dr. Burris
GAFP also wishes to congratulate the following residents for their newly elected board positions: Shantrice Appleby, M.D. (Morehouse School of Medicine) who was elected to be the new 2023 Resident Voting Director, Teresa Colon-Asumu, M.D. (Emory School of Medicine) elected as the new Alternate Director 2023 and Voting Director 2024 and Sydney Koenig-McRae, M.D. (Memorial Health University Medical Center/Mercer University) elected as the new 2023 Alternate Director 2023.
In addition, Nijah Burris, M.D. (Morehouse School of Medicine), was elected last year to a two-year term and will return as a Resident Voting Director this year.
Dr. Appleby
Shantrice Appleby, M.D. believes that participating on the GAFP board of directors “is a great way to collaborate with trainees and physician throughout Georgia, learn about strengths present in different regions of the state and weakness as well so that we can work together to improve clinical training, the service we provide to communities and things we advocate for on local and state level.”
Dr. Colon-Asum
Teresa Colon-Asumu, M.D. chose family medicine as a specialty due to the comprehensive approach it allows you to take in order to really serve patients. She has a background in public health and has always believed firmly in the importance of all aspects of health. She strives to understand the social determinants that serve as barriers for our communities to attain overall wellness.
Dr. Koenig-McRae
Sydney Koenig-McRae, M.D. stated that, “as family doctors, we know that our patients’ health isimpacted by so much more than just medications and treatments. They struggle against transportation issues, insurance coverage, and even access to safe homes and healthy foods – all things that we can advocate for to our state and nation.” She believes that to “do right by our patients means we are willing to get involved in these law-making processes that regulate not only their health care but their home lives.”
Welcome and congratulations to our students and residents in their new leadership roles!
Recruitment for 2021 Georgia Academy Leadership
To: GAFP Colleague (Active, Life, Resident, Medical Student)
From: Thomas D. Fausett, Jr. MD, FAAFP – President – 2020-2021
One of the most important roles serving as your President for this upcoming year is appointing the Committee members for 2021. I am soliciting your interest in participating on one of the Georgia Academy’s committees for next year.
I ask that you only volunteer to be nominated if you can attend either in person or by phone all 3 meetings in 2021. Although several committees meet more than 3 times a year, here are the dates for the expected 2021 Committee dates. Note that we do not expect to have any in-person meetings until June 2021:
I appreciate your consideration of service with your colleagues on a committee. We are only strong with many voices of family medicine working together.
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Committee membership will be held to no more than 15 members. For most committees, this will include one slot for a resident and a medical student. The expectation is that each member selected for a committee will have the ability to 1) attend the three committee conclave meetings, 2) respond to emails, and 3) review committee materials and be ready to offer advice and guidance.
There will also be a Legislative Session Working Group that meets weekly, but for a shorter time period (January-April 2021) to assist in Georgia Academy programs.
Following is a list of the opportunities for service. We encourage your interest and participation as this is certainly an important and pivotal time for family medicine. We are only as strong as the commitment and involvement of our members.
Education and Research Committee (15 members): This committee is responsible for all the educational activities of the Georgia Academy, including the annual and summer meeting, as well as our regional CME such as THRIVE and online offerings.
Finance Committee (15 members): This committee reviews the financials including our annual audit, staff benefits and the budget. It also makes recommendations to the Board on financial policies.
Legislative Committee (15 members): This committee oversees all advocacy and legislative activities and recommends action to the Board to assure representation of family medicine and our patients.
State Legislative Session Working Group (unlimited members): This working group will meet weekly by phone from January – April to review the policy priorities of the Georgia Academy along with receiving updates on the activities of the Georgia General Assembly. Areas of focus will include the State Budget (Medicaid, Public Health), Tort Reform, Insurance Initiatives, Public Safety, Medical Education, Funding of Family Medicine Residency Programs and Scope of Practice.
Membership Services Committee (15 members): This committee has the responsibility for membership recruitment and retention, overview of leadership development, as well as, for all local and national award nominations. This committee is also tasked with monitoring the communications to our members.
Practice Management Committee (15 members): The Practice Management Committee monitors insurance policies and issues that affect the business of family medicine. It also works on practice transformation and educating our members on business practices. The committee is continually monitoring new payment models and easing administrative burdens.
Public Health Committee (15 members): This committee works to improve the health and welfare of our state’s citizens by assisting Georgia’s Department of Public Health in their mission. The Georgia Academy has an ongoing contractual relationship with the Department of Public Health that is overseen by this committee.
Student and Resident Recruitment (15 members – 9 active/life members, 3 students, 3 residents) This Committee promotes family medicine to our Georgia medical students, pre-medical and high school students as well as looks for areas to support family medicine physicians-in-training.
Committee Membership Application:
Name_____________________________________________________________________________
I am a __________Medical Student ______________Resident ________________Family Physician
______________________________is the Committee I would like to serve on in 2021.
____________I can attend all 3 committee dates (either in person or by phone).
I cannot attend all three committee dates, I can attend _______________of the meetings.
My talents and expertise that will assist the committee are:
If I am not selected for my committee of choice. I would like to be considered for the _______________ Committee.
I would also like to volunteer for the Legislative Session Working Group:________________________________
Georgia Academy of Family Physicians
Fax to 404-321-7450
or email Angela Flanigan at aflanigan@gafp.org
CMS has confirmed that Georgia’s Section 1332 state innovation waiver, which changes the Affordable Care Act exchange model, is complete. The waiver will now move into a public comment period. As it currently stands, the state innovation waiver would shift Georgia’s individual health insurance marketplace from HealthCare.gov to its Georgia Access Model. It would also pursue a reinsurance program through tiered coinsurance.
The state expects the reinsurance program to stabilize the market, reducing premiums by over ten percent. The proposal projected that the Georgia Access Model would increase individual health insurance market enrollment by 25,000 and, as a result, bring down premiums by 3.5 percent. The cost to fund this project would be $144 million for its starting year 2022.
The Georgia Academy sent comments to Governor Kemp when the proposal was first up for review, and again has submitted comments to CMS. A summary of those comments is below:
While we appreciate that this proposal will not interrupt coverage with patients with pre-existing conditions, we are concerned about allowing non-ACA compliant plans into Georgia. Furthermore, removing Georgia from the healthcare.gov platform would penalize Georgians looking for a one-stop marketplace to compare and select insurance plans, forcing them to rely on scattershot network of web-brokers and other actors that may take into account Georgians’ financial or health needs. Under this arrangement, Georgia would be the only state nationwide to remove itself from this marketplace.
The current proposal to allow Georgians to buy extended, short-term health insurance (non-ACA compliant) is a step back to the days when companies sold low-value insurance policies that subjected our patients to catastrophic medical bills and medical bankruptcy.
The current proposal would allow exempt these non-compliant plans from Affordable Care Act consumer protections such as covering essential benefits, which include prescriptions, laboratory tests, hospitalization, and maternity care. It would allow plans to establish caps once again on annual benefits. Limiting benefits can expose patients to extraordinarily high out-of-pocket costs, particularly for people who have chronic or life-threatening conditions that require costly treatment, close monitoring and ongoing medication.
Equally troublesome, these plans further destabilize the individual market by drawing young, healthy people away from meaningful, comprehensive coverage that meets ACA standards. Allowing the healthy to gamble with low-quality insurance will also raise ACA-compliant plans’ premiums, putting better coverage beyond the reach of millions of the sickest Americans.
The Georgia Academy has stood with the American Academy of Family Physicians in steadfastly calling for policies that ensure all Americans have access to affordable, meaningful health insurance. Georgia policies should support patient-centered insurance reforms that prohibit insurers from selling plans that fail to provide meaningful coverage.
Any plan allowed to be sold to Georgians in our state should have these minimum essential health benefits:
Benefits
At a minimum, these would include items and services in the following benefit categories:
In addition to requiring coverage for essential health benefits, all proposals or options will ensure that primary care is provided through the patient’s primary care medical home. To foster a longitudinal relationship with a primary care physician, all proposals or options will provide the following services independent of financial barriers (i.e., deductibles and co-pays) if the services are provided by the patient’s designated primary care physician:
The leadership will continue to monitor the progress of this CMS waiver and inform the membership when news develops.
Mark your calendars and register for the GAFP Virtual Annual Fall CME Meeting, November 13th – November 14th, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
The GAFP has partnered with EZ Audio Visual to power the 2020 Annual CME meeting which will be live streamed on November 13th – November 14th offering up to 13 AAFP Prescribed Credits with an opportunity to earn an additional 24 AAFP Prescribed Credits by participating in the offered KSAs. The virtual conference agenda includes clinical education on such topics as Social Determinants of Health, Diabetes, Lupus Erythematosus, Heart Failure, and Cancer updates. Please click here for meeting information and to register to attend virtually. A full schedule is available to view on the GAFP website.
Great news! We have opened more slots for the GAFP Virtual Knowledge Self-Assessment Study Groups. We will be using a robust web-based system that will allow family physician to complete the KSA while engaging their peers and an expert content leader from a location of their choosing. The Education and Research Committee has scheduled the virtual KSAs for the following dates:
Please note that you can register for the virtual KSAs on the Annual Meeting registration page. KSAs are open to all GAFP members and will carry a separate fee for participants.
New this year! The Georgia Academy of Family Physicians will offer the virtual coding workshop on Wednesday, December 2, 2020. You will not want to miss education on the latest information you need for your physician’s practice. For $95, your registration includes the popular Coding Workshop with Steve Adams, CPC.
Objectives:
Review and discuss CY 2021 CPT code updates and the upcoming 2022 EM Coding Changes that will drastically change the entire EM system moving forward
To register, select Virtual Coding Workshop and then checkout.
For meeting information and registration, visit the GAFP’s website at www.gafp.org. If you have any questions, call the GAFP office at 1-800-392-3841.
*Application for CME credit has been filed with the American Academy of Family Physicians. Determination of credit is approved.
The COVID-19 pandemic presented many challenges to the healthcare community and the patients they serve in Georgia. In response, the Alliance paused the second cycle of our Community Health Grant program to launch the Immediate Needs Grants program in March to help address some of the unique challenges Georgia’s communities faced due to the Coronavirus outbreak.
With the knowledge that family physicians are on the front lines of public health issues affecting our communities, GHFA designed the Immediate Needs Grant program to provide GAFP members and their affiliated community organizations up to $1,000 to support critical health needs for our most fragile citizens and patients. Since late March, we have awarded $36,000 to projects including prescription assistance for homebound senior citizens, lunch delivery for vulnerable children who no longer have access to school meals, PPE for charitable care clinics, childcare services for first responders and sanitizer distribution for Atlanta’s large homeless community to name a few.
In late May, GHFA received word from the AAFP Foundation that the Immediate Needs Grant Program was selected as the AAFP Foundation Outstanding Program of the Year! The GHFA Board is humbled to be recognized for our collective effort to help our patients and communities maintain health and hope during these uncertain times.
To continue providing this critical support to our communities, we need your help! GHFA has established a COVID-19 relief fund, and we have already awarded $36,000 in funds to support patients all over the state. We created a social media campaign using the Fundly platform and set a goal of $10,000 to allow us to award more Immediate Needs Grants. Any amount you can give towards our COVID-19 relief fund is of course appreciated and will make an immediate impact on the lives of the people in our communities, no amount is too small. You can follow this link to give directly to our online campaign: https://fundly.com/ghfa-covid-19-immediate-needs-grants-fund. All gifts will have an immediate impact on our mission as we work to meet the healthcare needs of our community during these unprecedented times.
Immediate Needs Grant Applications are still available online at www.georgiahealthyfamilyalliance.org and will be accepted as long as funds are available.
Please reach out to Kara Sinkule at ksinkule@gafp.org or by calling (404) 321-7445 with questions or for more information.
GAFP Member, Angela Evans, MD was quoted in the August 2020 issue of the Georgia Trend on “Telemedicine Tipping Point”. Click here to read the full article.
To: GAFP Member – Exclusive Event for GAFP / AAFP PAC Donors
Re: 2020 Election – National and State Sneak Peek – Review of Key Races – Too Close to Call?
Tuesday, October 20th – 6:00 pm
If you have not already received an exclusive email from either the GAFP or the AAFP, it means that we haven’t received a PAC donation for your state PAC (GAFP PAC) or the national PAC (AAFP FAM MEDPAC) – and we want you to be a part of this donor-only event.
We want to offer all our members a sneak peek in key races – both nationally and at a state level – and how the election will shape health care in 2021 (and for many years to come). Please join us for this update as we will be less than 20 days from election day – and every vote counts.
Faculty:
Donate Below – After Your Donation You Will Receive an Invitation to Register for the Tuesday, October 20th Event
GAFP PAC: https://gafp.org/pac/
AAFP Fam MED PAC: https://www.aafp.org/advocacy/support.html?navid=fammedpac
Congress of Delegates First Session Webinar/Conference Call
October 29th – 6:00pm
GAFP Members – Join the Discussion
The first meeting of the Congress of Delegates will be via conference call / webinar on Thursday, October 29, at 6 pm. All members are invited and encouraged to attend. Please register for the 1st session of the Congress of Delegates by clicking this link Congress of Delegates: 1st Session.
Members are invited to speak to resolutions of interest or concern to you. Final 2020 resolutions will be available Friday, October 23 on the GAFP website.
The second session of the Congress of Delegates is virtual and will take place on Sunday, November 15th from 2:30pm until 5:30pm via Zoom. The second session is where final discussion and voting occurs. COD delegates can speak and vote for your district during the second session. Click here —Congress of Delegates 2nd Session to register for the Congress of Delegates Zoom Meeting. Below is the current list of delegates.
2020 District Delegates as of 10/1/20
Speaker: Carl McCurdy, MD, FAAFP
Vice Speaker: Monica Newton, DO, FAAFP
District 1 Delegates
Angela Gerguis, MD
Russell Lake, MD
Jamal Lawrence, MD
Mary Mier, DO
Peter Rives, MD
District 2 Delegates
Mike Busman, MD
Zita Magloire, MD
Michael Satchell, MD
District 3 Delegates
Joy Adegbile, MD
Mah-Fri Fomukong, MD
Shawnte Hall-Kraft, MD
Tamara Lewis, MD
Evelyn Lewis&Clark, MD
Curtis Sorensen, MD
District 3 Alternates:
Avril Campbell, MD
Curtis Clark, DO
James Hagler, MD
Beulette Hooks, MD
Alice House, MD
Daniel Singleton, MD
District 4 Delegates
William Bostock, MD
Kris Manlove-Simmons, MD
John Shih, MD
District 5 Delegates
Shameka Hunt-McElhaney, MD
Allison Key, MD
Susan Schayes, MD
Kele Sewell, MD
Jeff Stone, MD
District 6 Delegates
Tameka Byrd, MD
Hubert Pare, MD
Cyrenah Stokley, DO
Harry Strothers, MD
Brandan Wormsbacher, MD
District 7 Delegates
John Desmond, MD
Pamela Obi, MD
Leonard Reeves, MD
Stephanie Stutz, DO
Katherine Taylor, MD
District 7 Alternate Delegates
Emma Atherton-Staples, MD
Brian Cheever, MD
Christina Douglass, MD
District 8 Delegates
Jason Cox, MD
Jay Goberdhan, MD
Eugene Jackson, MD
District 8 Alternate:
Donny Nash, MD
District 9 Delegates
Amy Bailey, MD
Samuel “Le” Church, MD
Kathryn Neely, MD
Morris Pulliam, MD
Anne Todd, MD
Jake Varghese, MD
District 10 Delegates
Temitope Afon, MD
Edward Agabin, MD
Mitch Cook, DO
Julie Dahl-Smith, DO
Bruce LeClair, MD
District 11 Delegates
Derrell Anglyn, MD
Thomas Bat, MD
Michelle Cooke, MD
Daniel Feckoury, MD
Kennard Hood, MD
Marissa Lapedis, MD
Zazi Nylander, MD
Michael Obiekewe, MD
Sylveria Olatidoye, MD
Priya Shah, MD
Angeline Ti, MD
Resident Delegates:
Anthony Daniels, MD
Augusta University
Ajibola Babatunde, MD
Houston Healthcare
Osara Malalasekara, MD
Wellstar Atlanta Medical
Macy McNair, MD
Morehouse Family Medicine Residency Program
Philomise Moncion, MD
Medical Center of Central Georgia
Student Delegates:
Caitlin Balno – Mercer Savannah
Naomi Coles – Morehouse School of Medicine
Sydney Koenig – Mercer School of Medicine
Join the GAFP Journal Club – October 19, 2020 as we discuss two recent key journal articles: The association of menopausal hormone therapy with breast cancer and the Impact of social and clinical complexity on diabetes control measures.
The GAFP Virtual Journal Club, is a free benefit to all members! Each one-hour forum will help participants stay current of research findings, exercise their critical thinking skills, and engage in scholarly discussions. During the session, journal articles vetted by the GAFP’s Education and Research Committee will be critically evaluated, exposing the study’s strengths and weaknesses. Presenters and participants may receive up to 1.0 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™ and *1.0 AAFP Prescribed Credits for their participation in each Virtual Journal Club session.
October 19, 2020 at 7:00 pm | Register
Presenters
Moderator
Robert L. Addleton, EdD, Principal, Leadership in Practice
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How to Submit an Abstract
Interested in presenting? The Education and Research Committee is still accepting abstract submissions. All current resident member or a faculty member from a Georgia family medicine residency program are invited and eligible to submit abstracts to present. There is no limit to the number of articles that may be submitted, however only 12 articles and presenters will be selected. Abstract submission details may be found by clicking here.
Facilitation of discussion qualifies as part of a Resident’s quarterly research activity.
How to Attend
Please use the registration links below to join the online forums. Early registration is recommended as registration is limited.
Forum Schedule
October 26, 2020 at 7:00 pm | Register
Available Journal Club Openings
For questions regarding registration or abstract submissions, please contact Angela Flanigan, GAFP Chief Operating Officer (aflanigan@gafp.org).
The Virtual Journal Club CME activity is supported by an educational grant from the American Board of Family Medicine.
*Approved for 1.0 Prescribed Credit
Review and Proposed Changes to the current GAFP Bylaws
The Bylaws Committee typically convenes every other year and reviews our standing bylaws for potential changes. This year, GAFP Bylaws Committee met in March 2020. They are recommending updating our bylaws to include the new category of “Transitional membership.” The AAFP adopted a Transitional member category in 2018, and the GAFP bylaws are currently silent on this new category.
Please click here to review the suggested Bylaws change. The Congress of Delegates will review and make final decisions on the suggested changes at their upcoming meeting on October 29th (Reference Committee) and final session, Sunday, November 15th.
Georgia Healthy Family Alliance (GHFA) Seeking GAFP Member to Serve on Alliance Board of Trustees
Looking for a way to be more involved with your academy? Want to give back but aren’t sure where to start? The Georgia Healthy Family Alliance (GHFA) is seeking an interested GAFP member to serve on the Alliance Board of Trustees beginning in 2021.
Formerly the Foundation of the GAFP, the Alliance was founded in 1987 and is the philanthropic arm of the Georgia Academy of Family Physicians. The mission of the Alliance is to enhance the well-being of Georgia citizens through educational and community programs that promote healthy practices consistent with the principles of family medicine.
Now, more than ever the Alliance needs family physicians who are excited about our future focusing on our Capital Campaign that is nearly halfway to raising $4 million dollars. The campaign will allow the Alliance to expand its educational and community outreach efforts including the Community Health Grant Program, Immediate Needs Grants for COVID-19 assistance and the Tar Wars tobacco and vaping education program. The campaign will also provide the Alliance with a full-time team dedicated to improving the health and welfare of our local communities in Georgia. There is an expectation that new Trustees will make a contribution to GHFA’s Capital Campaign in an amount that is meaningful to them.
New board members will serve four-year terms (2021-2025) and will help guide and oversee GHFA projects including:
Board members are expected to attend each of the three GHFA board meetings in 2021. Tentative 2021 GHFA meeting dates (some locations in Georgia TBD):
Saturday – March 2021 -TBD
Saturday – August 2021 – TBD
Friday- November 2021 – Atlanta, GA
Thank you in advance for considering this leadership role. Interested members should fill out the form below by September 25th and e-mail it to ksinkule@gafp.org. To learn more visit us on the web at http://www.georgiahealthyfamilyalliance.org
Position Applying for: Georgia Healthy Family Alliance Board Seat
Name:
City:
Current Volunteer Activities:
If selected, can you commit to attending all board meetings and responding to GHFA staff on a timely basis?
Why are you interested in participating on the Alliance Board?