Re: Gaining momentum, working towards common goals

[Guest guest]

Thanks, Gordon!

In addition to joing the AAFP private sector advocacy listserv, all of you are welcome to take a couple of surveys on

surveymonkey. Thanks to Kathy Saradarian for introducing FPs to

this useful tool. Anyone can create a survey like I've done below at no cost.

Some of the questions can't be answered w/o an AAFP ID, but if you're

ped or IM, your input using your AAP or ACP ID is just as

valuable. Over the last 2 years, about 100 AAFP members

passed solo/small group resolutions in our state academies, then sent

them on

to our national organization where they have become policy. We have

scratched our heads as to how we might get solo and small group pedi's

and internists

more involved in their organizations, so Gordon might be giving us just

the trigger we

have been looking for.

If there is sufficient interest in nudging ACP and/or AFP toward more

direct solo/small group advocacy, and traffic on that subject becomes a

distraction here, I will happily create another listserv for primary

care solo/small group advocacy to include pediatricians, internists,

and family physicians. Each of our three organizations are promoting

the concept of a medical home for all Americans, even those under the

care of subspecialists. We all have seen our patients poorly served

because no one is directing their total care.

How neat it would be if there were

enough interest that we would need our own solo/small group advocacy

listserv! Thanks again, Gordon! What a terrific movement

you have started, for more reasons than

have been obvious before now! Maybe there really is hope

for private primary care practices to

survive and flourish.

The link to the first survey is:

http://www.surveymonkey.com/Users/77069064/Surveys/409083067994/AD16C181-9CF5-499A-AD0B-7E860A05712B.asp?U=409083067994 & DO_NOT_COPY_THIS_LINK

The second one is at

http://www.surveymonkey.com/Users/77069064/Surveys/598943077371/3F7F0959-EE1F-428B-9F11-F887F3B27A8C.asp?U=598943077371 & DO_NOT_COPY_THIS_LINK

You're supposed to answer the first survey before doing the second.

The second one requires you to do some work on your state academy

website. While these questions were written for FPs, they can be used

by pedi's and internists as well. Some state organizations don't have their own separate sites, but are linked to their

national organizations. The answers you can give in those cases

are just as appropriate for the purposes of the survey.

The results of the first survey (called 'untitled survey') up through

Dec 31, 2006, follow below; it will stay open indefinitely, so please

don't

hesitate to take it because results have already been posted.

Each survey should be taken only once. The second requires FPs to be

signed up on the AAFP private sector advocacy

listserv; if AAP and ACP do not have equivalent forums for

discussion, now is the perfect time to get them started.

Until that time, however, please answer the questions as best as you

can.

Be sure to copy the links!! Then paste into your address bar.

Results of Survey on involvement in AAFP state academies and the effectiveness of individual state

academy websites as of December 31, 2006.

48% of respondents to

the survey say they have been to a state academy scientific meeting.

48% of respondents

to the survey don't report ever attending a state academy business meeting in

any capacity.

46% of those who say they have attended a business meeting

have done so as observers.

Regarding state academy websites:

12.5% who responded to the question say they have never

visited their state academy website.

50% of all those surveyed

report visiting their state academy website frequently.

33% of those who

have visited their state academy website even once visit it frequently.

Regarding contact information for your state organization:

10.5% of those who

responded to the question say contact information for their state academy is

NOT easily accessible.

Regarding the next state organization meeting:

20% of those who answered the question say they

cannot easily find out when and where their next state academy meeting is.

Regarding contacting officers:

19% of those who responded to the question say they cannot

easily find out how to contact an officer from the website.

Regarding state academy working committees/commissions:

44% of those who responded to the question say they cannot

easily find a list of state academy committees or commissions.

Regarding the kinds of practices our docs have currently:

4% who answered the

question say they are not currently practicing as a physician.

8% who answered the

question say they are employed in the public sector.

4% who answered the

question say they are in a practice with 4-10 physicians.

4% who answered the

question say they are in a practice with over 10 physicians.

79% who answered the question say they are in solo practice.

Regarding the biggest problem we have of 6 possible choices:

Of the physicians who answered the question , ___ % say their biggest problem is:

12.5% They are wondering how they will ever pay back student

loans.

25% They barely earn

enough to make ends meet.

12.5% They need for tort reform.

38% There are too many hassles with insurance companies.

4% They are too busy to keep up with medicine.

8% They are burned out.

Is it worthwhile trying to change medicine?

Of those who answered this question, 88% think medicine isn't

so far gone that it's useless to try to change it.

Hopefully,

these results will spur those of us in solo and small group primary

care to become more involved in our state organizations as a means to

change the direction medicine is headed. Most of us think there

is still hope.

Cheers and Happy New Year!

Thanks again, Gordon.

Shirley P

Texas

Hi folks

Some of the folks on the list are part of other groups working on

improving health care. They sometimes take different paths but

appear to me to be headed to the same goals. Insofar as there is

common interest, it behooves us to collaborate and support these other

initiatives.

Shirley Pigott and others are taking the path of Family Medicine

advocacy. This approach may appeal to others on the list, and

adding your voice to theirs may help us all.

If you are an AAFP member and want to add your voice, go to AAFP homepage

(www.aafp.org): Policy and

Advocacy -> Private Sector Advocacy -> Subscribe to 'email

discussion list'. They need their AAFP ID number, but that's on

American Family Physician or any other mail they receive. The

traffic is very light, but if you are worried about volume, you can use

the 'bulletin-board' function and get mail no more than once per

day.

Everyone: just be sensitive to non family docs on the list. This is

not intended to be a family med club, but a group working on solutions to

the ubiquitous problems facing health care in the U.S. We have a

lot in common with the ACP Medical Home movement.

Gordon