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NEED TO KNOW
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COVID-19 Booster Updates, HMPXV Updates
Both Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 bivalent boosters are now available at community walk-in clinics hosted by EMS and local health offices. More information will be available soon regarding whether flu vaccine will also be offered at these clinics.
Pfizer bivalent boosters were available for medical practices to order from State supplies on Monday. Due to an unprecedented volume of requests, most orders were reduced, and those received after 5pm Monday were not approved. Fortunately, the wait to place a first order, or to order additional supply is short. The Immunization Program expects another allocation this Thursday, Sept 15, and weekly allocations going forward. New orders can be placed beginning Thursday morning. Moderna boosters may become available the week of September 19th, details will be communicated. To subscribe to or view ongoing updates from the Immunization Program, click here. For full notes from an infectious disease update call held last Friday with Commissioner of Health Mark Levine, MD, click here.
Commissioner Levine also provided an update on Human Monkeypox Virus (HMPXV) and reported that the virus is currently quiet in Vermont. The major news is that the WHO feels like Europe is beginning to see a moderation and decrease in cases. Vermont has only seen three residents diagnosed so far, and while there is still relatively little vaccine available in Vermont it is available for pre-exposure prophylaxis. Up-to-date information on HMPXV is available from the Department of Health here. |
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Legionnaires’ Disease Cluster in Northwest Vermont
The Vermont Department of Health is investigating a cluster of five (5) patients who tested positive for Legionella and reside in Franklin or Grand Isle Counties. Legionnaires’ disease diagnosis dates for these patients ranged from 08/09/22 to 08/27/22. There are no known common sources of exposure among these patients, although all spent time in Franklin County during their incubation periods.
Read more about Legionella and requested actions here. |
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Governor Phil Scott Announces Green Mountain Care Board Appointments, Including ED Physician
Governor Phil Scott last Thursday announced the appointments of a chair and two members to the Green Mountain Care Board. Owen Foster, of Jericho has been appointed chair, and Dr. David Murman, of Waterbury, and Robin Lunge, of Berlin, will serve as members on the five-member board.
“The impact of the pandemic and inflation that followed significantly affected our nation’s health care system,” said Governor Scott. “Stabilizing and modernizing the delivery system, prioritizing prevention and healthier lifestyles, and ensuring equitable access to care are essential steps toward making sure health care costs are not growing faster than Vermonters’ ability to pay. The road ahead will not be easy, and the challenges facing the health care system will be difficult to solve, but I’m thankful that Owen, Robin, and David are willing to serve on the board and join in the work address these issues.”
Since 2014, Foster has served as an assistant United States attorney in the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Vermont, where he is the healthcare fraud coordinator and the ethics officer. Murman currently leads resident and medical student education and works as an emergency physician at Central Vermont Medical Center (CVMC). Prior to his current position, he was an emergency physician and co-director of emergency ultrasound at the University of Vermont Medical Center and an emergency physician at Baystate Medical Center. Lunge has served on the Board since 2016. Jessica Holmes, who has served as interim chair since August, will return to her role as a member of the Board, for a term expiring September 30, 2026. Member Tom Walsh was appointed in December 2021. To see the full press release announcing the appointments, click here.
VMS has been advocating since 2017 for vacant positions on the Board to be filled by a practicing physician or health care professional. VMS is pleased to see an emergency department physician appointed to one of the seats and looks forward to working with the new members. |
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UVM Health Network Concerned by GMCB Cuts
The Green Mountain Care Board (GMCB) reduced commercial insurance rate increases at two University of Vermont Health Network hospitals Monday, drawing a sharp response from the Network. To read VTDigger coverage, click here. To read the response from UVM Health Network, click here and find the GMCB statement on the FY2023 hospital budget process here. |
MISC.
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Reminder to Register for VMS Hosted Fall Candidate Meet and Greets this October
Please join the Vermont Medical Society this fall for candidate
meet & greets in three districts across the State. These will be in-person
social events to which we are inviting Vermont State House and Senate
legislative candidates from Washington, Chittenden and Rutland counties to
member-led receptions in their respective districts. VMS members who work or
practice in these districts are invited to these informal meet & greets to
get to know the candidates who could be representing them after the general
election in November. For questions please email Jill Sudhoff-Guerin at jsudhoffguerin@vtmd.org. Register for each event below (events are free to members but a head count is needed) : |
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UVM Health Network Names Sunil Eappen, MD, MBA, as Next Leader
Following an extensive national search, The University of Vermont Health Network has named Sunil “Sunny” Eappen, MD, MBA, as the health system’s next President and Chief Executive Officer. Dr. Eappen, who comes from Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, part of the Mass General Brigham network, will be responsible for oversight of all operations, including the flagship academic medical center, five community hospitals, children’s hospital, multi-specialty physicians group, and home health and hospice agency. Read more here. |
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Resources: HIPAA Privacy Rule and Disclosures of Information Relating to Reproductive Health Care
In light of the Dobbs v. Jackson’s Women’s Health Organization decision, in June the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued guidance on how the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) safeguards reproductive health records. The Network for Public Health Law has also recently released a fact sheet providing additional guidance on how HIPAA applies to abortion records. The fact sheet cautions that HIPAA permits certain disclosures of protected health information to law enforcement when all conditions are met. To reduce the risk of unauthorized disclosures, covered entities should develop, review, and update clear policies and procedures for releasing protected health information, including to law enforcement. They can also appropriately train all staff to ensure that all conditions and limitations on disclosures to law enforcement are met. |
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EVENTS
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No Cost Well-Being Workshops
VMS is continuing our partnership with Doug Wysockey-Johnson of LumunosWellBeing to offer no-cost clinician wellbeing workshops at up to 10 Vermont medical staffs/practices over 2022. There are 3 remaining slots available this summer. New topics for 2022 include A Clinician’s Guide to Recovering from the COVID Marathon and A Realistic Look at ‘Work-Home Balance’ for Clinicians. See the full list and additional details here. Members can contact jbarnard@vtmd.org or doug@lumunos.org for more information or to schedule a workshop. |
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Providing Health Care to Refugees: Tuberculosis Webinar
September 22, 2022, 12:15 pm
Join us on September 1st from 12:15pm to 1pm EST, for a webinar that will discuss providing catch up immunizations/ongoing care to pediatric refugees.
This webinar is a part of a series of webinars on Health Care for Refugees hosted by the Vermont Medical Society. Anyone interested is encouraged to attend. Registration is required here.
To learn more about what other topics will be included in this series, click here. |
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VMS COVID Conversation with the Commissioner of Health, Mark Levine, M.D. October 6, 2022, 12:30pm EST
The September 1st call will be replaced by the Providing Catch Up Immunizations/On-going Pediatric Care as part of our Providing Healthcare to Refugees webinar series. You can register for that webinar here.
The next time we will speak with the Commissioner of Health will be October 6, 2022 where he will provide us with the most pressing information affecting the state and nation. You will have the opportunity to submit questions to Dr. Levine who will answer them, time-permitting.
You can join the zoom meetings here which take place on the 1st and 3rd Thursday of the month from 12:30pm to 1pm EST or add to your calendar by following this link and clicking download (you will then need to open the downloaded file and click save to add to your calendar). |
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Supporting FAMILIES Impacted by Substance Use/Mental Illness
October 8, 2022, 1:30pm to 3pm EDT
In-person at Jenna's House
AND
October 9, 2022, 4pm to 5:30pm EDT
In-person at Rock Point Center
Dr. Libby Stuyt, the Vermont Psychiatric Association 2022 Keynote Speaker will lead the conference.
This training will educate providers on the needs of families impacted by a loved one's substance use disorder or severe mental illness. The aim is to both increase awareness of the needs of this group of individuals' for support and provide tools such as traditional CBT as well as acupuncture and mindfulness training that can decrease the family member's stress, anxiety or PTSD. Resilient families help create healthy communities where recovery is possible and supported.
Evidence based tools such as mindfulness practice, acupuncture, acupressure, biofeedback and emotional freedom technics will be introduced. Providers, including EMTs and first responders, will also learn non-pharmacological methods to decrease patient's anxiety, stress and PTSD while helping to cultivate coherence, self calming and emotional regulation .
Register here. |
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25th Annual Women's Health and Cancer Conference
September 30, 2022, 8am to 3pm EST
In-person and Virtual
Join us for a special 25th anniversary celebration and a keynote address by Kim Dittus, MD, PhD, Moving from treating cancer to treating the whole person.
This free, educational event is geared towards a broad range of clinical providers as well as patients, friends and family members, researchers, and caregivers. Together, you'll learn about cancer screening, treatment, survivorship, reducing the cancer burden, and how the science has changed over 25 years (and where it’s going next). This conference is accredited at no charge to participants courtesy of the UVM Cancer Center.
For more information about the speakers, sessions, accreditation and to register please visit here.
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Vermont ACP Chapter Annual Scientific Meeting October 14, 2022 Trapp Family Lodge, Stowe, VT
The Vermont ACP Chapter's Annual Scientific Meeting will occur on Friday, October 14, 2022. The ACP is optimistically planning for an in-person meeting. The ACP will host a virtual poster competition for resident and student members.
Update your medical knowledge, engage with colleagues, and receive CME credits and MOC points.
For meeting details and to register, click here.
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Private Practice Simple Solutions: Team Documentation October 18, 2022, 10:00 am CDT
The AMA’s newly launched Private Practice Simple Solutions series is designed to help implement actionable changes that can improve efficiencies within a physician’s practice. Each
FREE multi-week session focuses on a single topic. This Team Documentation session will be a panel with subject matter
expert on common obstacles in a clinical vignette. Register here.
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Neurology for the Non-Neurology
October 21, 2022, The Essex in Essex, VT
Back at The Essex, this course is designed to update the non-neurologist on how to diagnose common neurological disorders, order appropriate diagnostic studies, and provide appropriate patient care. Topics include: Headache, Epilepsy, MS, Office Neuro Exam, Neuro-Oncology, Long COVID and more.
For more information about speakers, sessions, accreditation and to register please visit here.
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Northern New England Neurological Society Annual Meeting
October 21-22, 2022, The Essex in Essex, VT
The NNENS Annual Meeting will present an update on latest treatments and therapeutic options across the field. The meeting is open to neurologists and other medical professionals with an interest in neurology. You do not need to be a NNENS member to attend!
For more information about speakers, sessions, accreditation and to register please visit here.
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Osteoporosis Update for Primary Care 2022
November 4, 2022, The Hampton Inn Conference Center in Colchester, VT
Designed to improve the skills of the primary care healthcare team as they are often the first to encounter patients who have, or who are at risk of developing, osteoporosis. Topics include: Osteo in men, treatment medications, proper use of calcium and vitamin D, fractures from an orthopedic standpoint, and more!
For more information about our speakers, sessions, accreditation and to register please visit here.
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Vermont Medical Society Annual and Collaborative Meeting November 4th and 5th, 2022
The 209th VMS Annual Meeting will be held on November 4th and 5th in person at Topnotch Resort, Stowe, VT, with virtual options. The weekend will be filled with educational content, time to spend with colleagues, policy-setting meetings, and the opportunity to honor physicians and other health care leaders across the state. VMS’ Annual Meeting, hosted in collaboration with the American Academy of Pediatrics Vermont Chapter, the Vermont Academy of Family Physicians and the Vermont Psychiatric Association, is a celebration of the unwavering commitment Vermont clinicians have to their practice and to the deep connection VMS members have with each other.
To view more information or submit nominees for 2022 leadership awards, please click here. Register here.
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UVM will have conferences for Emergency Medicine, Hospital Medicine, Dermatology and Anesthesia this Winter 2023. Sign-up to get updates via email for topics that are of interest here. |
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Vermont Medical Society 134 Main Street Montpelier, VT 05602 -- Unsubscribe -- |
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