December 2012

• Sonoma docs invited to FREE Operation Access celebration on Dec. 11

• Upcoming SCMA online survey offers chance to win an iPad

• Update your Sonoma County Physician Directory listing

• Pay your SCMA/CMA dues by Jan. 15 and get a 5% discount

• Top stories from CMA Alert

• PEOPLE

• MEDICAL FACILITIES

• RESOURCES

• CLASSIFIEDS

• APPLICANTS

• ABOUT SCMA

Still time to RSVP for Dec. 6 SCMA Awards Dinner

The hour is late, but reservations are still being accepted for the annual SCMA Awards Dinner on Dec. 6. The dinner is free for SCMA members. Spouses, guests and nonmembers are $50 each.

To RSVP, or to purchase tickets, contact Rachel Pandolfi at 707-525-4375 or rachel@scma.org. Mail orders can be sent to SCMA, 2901 Cleveland Ave. #202, Santa Rosa, CA 95403. Please indicate dinner choice: either “duet” (prawns and steak) or vegetable lasagna.

The dinner runs from 6 to 9 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 6, at the Vintner’s Inn, 4350 Barnes Rd., Santa Rosa. The festivities begin with a social hour at 6, followed by dinner and the awards presentations. Award winners include Drs. John Dervin, Sanjay Dhar, Catherine Gutfreund, Jeff Haney and Mark Netherda, along with the Redwood Community Health Coalition.

For a flyer about the dinner, click on the link below.

SCMA Awards Dinner flyer

Operation Access, which coordinates donated surgical and specialty care for uninsured and underserved patients, will co-host a Celebration of Medical Volunteerism with SCMA and the Marin Medical Society on Tuesday, Dec. 11, from 5:30 to 8 p.m. This informal free event will be held at the Lagunitas Brewery, 1280 N. McDowelll Blvd., Petaluma.

All local doctors and their spouses or significant others are invited to attend and are asked to bring an unwrapped holiday gift for a foster child. Beer, wine, hors d’oeuvres and wood-fired oven pizza will be offered, along with live music from Under the Radar (folk, blues, bluegrass) and the Petaluma High School Jazz Combo. The evening also includes a brief program honoring community volunteers, with special recognition for Dr. Julie Clark, Dr. Anne Delaney, Dr. David Galland, and Gale O’Connor, CRNA.

To RSVP, contact Daniel Rabkin at rsvp@operationaccess.org or 415-733-0004. The event is cosponsored by the Meritage Medical Network, Kaiser Permanente, Marin General Hospital, Sutter Health and St. Joseph Health. For more details, click on the link below.

Operation Access Dec. 11 Celebration flyer

Later this month, SCMA will be sending an online survey to all local physicians asking for their thoughts and insights about the medical association and healthcare-related issues. Survey results will help guide SCMA board members as they consider a strategic plan for 2013 and beyond. The goal of the plan is to ensure that SCMA fulfills its mission of supporting physicians and their efforts to enhance the health of the community.

SCMA members who choose to identify themselves will be entered into a drawing with a chance to win an iPad. Nonmembers who submit an application form and pay their 2013 dues will also be entered into the drawing.

Update your Sonoma County Physician Directory listing

SCMA is still accepting updates for the 2013 Sonoma County Physician Directory. The directory features photographs and detailed listings for all SCMA members, including their specialty(s), special medical interest and medical training. Basic information for nonmember physicians is included as well.

To update your listing, return the directory verification form to SCMA by Dec. 31. If you need a copy of the form, contact Rachel Pandolfi at 707-525-4375 or rachel@scma.org.

Pay your SCMA/CMA dues by Jan. 15 and get a 5% discount

Members who pay their 2013 SCMA/CMA dues by Jan. 15 get a 5% discount. To qualify for the discount, dues must be received in CMA’s Sacramento office by Jan. 15, not just postmarked by that date. Dues invoices were mailed earlier this fall. If you need a copy, contact Rachel Pandolfi at 707-525-4375 or rachel@scma.org.

Donate to SCMA health careers scholarship fund

There’s still time to donate to the Holiday Greeting Card project, which helps fund scholarships for deserving students who are Sonoma County residents and are currently enrolled or intending to enroll in a medically related field of study. Last year’s effort helped raise $31,000 in scholarship money--a record amount--for a dozen students in medical, nursing and allied health programs.

Donors who contribute by Dec. 6 will be acknowledged in a holiday greeting card sent to physicians throughout the county. The card features a photograph by Santa Rosa pediatrician Dr. Leland Davis.

Donations can be made by mail or by visiting the SCMA Alliance website at www.scmaa.org. The program has given scholarships to local students since the 1960s, and several former recipients are currently practicing medicine in Sonoma County.

Here are the top stories from the latest CMA Alert, the California Medical Association’s biweekly email newsletter. For a free subscription, visit www.cmanet.org/cma-alert.

* Physicians who wish to opt out of new Blue Cross network must act soon

* California one of five states with lowest antibiotic use in nation

* 2013 Medicare fee schedules posted

* Palmetto protests Medicare contract award

* DHCS ready for 5010 upgrade

PEOPLE

Dr. Dale Westrom, a dermatologist with offices in Santa Rosa and Healdsburg, has received a Member Making a Difference award from the American Academy of Dermatology. The award is in recognition of Dr. Westrom’s volunteer work with the Brighter Days Program and his establishment of a walk-in dermatology clinic. He will be honored at the Academy’s upcoming annual meeting.

The rapidly expanding Petaluma Health Center has hired two more physicians. Dr. Jose Chibras is an internist from the South Bay, where he served as chief medical officer and interim CEO for Salud Para La Gente. Dr. Carlin Chi, who attended Harvard Medical School and UCSF, is a family physician from San Mateo County. In addition to these new physicians, the Health Center has also hired a geropsychologist and two physician assistants.

Annadel Medical Group has added three more physicians. Dr. Rebecca Wolk, a pediatric hospitalist, and Dr. Meghana Gaiki, an internal medicine hospitalist, are both at Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital. Dr. Kenny Mai is an internal medicine hospitalist at Petaluma Valley Hospital.

Dr. Donald Dean, a longtime SCMA member and former medical director of the old Sonoma State Hospital (now called the Sonoma Developmental Center), died in November at the age of 85. Born in Ohio in 1927, he served in the Army as a photo lithographer and bugler during World War II. He received his MD from Ohio State University and then completed a psychiatry residency in San Francisco. After working in Buffalo for several years, he was lured back to California with a job offer from Sonoma State Hospital, where he worked from 1968 to 1983. He subsequently worked at several other institutions before retiring to Sonoma County, where he continued to work as a locum tenens psychiatrist. He is survived by his wife of 60 years, Mary Jane Dean, as well as three children and five grandchildren.

MEDICAL FACILITIES

Three Sonoma County hospitals received an “A” grade in updated hospital safety scores from the Leapfrog Group, a nonprofit founded by large purchasers of health benefits. Kaiser Santa Rosa, Petaluma Valley Hospital and the soon-to-be-closed Sutter Warrack Hospital all received top marks for minimizing infections, patient injuries, and medical or medication errors. Three other hospitals earned B’s or C’s, and two were not rated. No one received a D or an F, the lowest grade. For complete listings of all 2,600 hospitals participating in the ratings, visit www.hospitalsafetyscore.org.

RESOURCES

The following CMA webinars are scheduled for December. Webinars begin at 12:15 p.m. and run until 1:15 or later. To register, visit www.cmanet.org. Seminars are free for CMA members and their staff; cost for nonmembers is $99 per person.

* Impact of ICD-10 (Dec. 5)

* California's new Coordinated Care Initiative (CCI) for dual eligibles

Medical volunteers of all types are needed for a Remote Area Medical Volunteer Corps clinic to be held in the Coachella Valley in Southern California during April 2013. The clinic will provide free medical, dental and vision care to patients with limited access to care. For more information, or to volunteer, visit www.ram-ca.org.

CLASSIFIEDS

Family medicine positions available

Family medicine positions available with Annadel Medical Group in Sonoma County. Contact James.DeVore@stjoe.org.

Office space, Santa Rosa

Small suite for lease. 800 sf. Reception, business office, 3 rooms, Summerfield Rd. on Sutter/Warrack campus. Contact Connie, 707-525-0211.

Office space needed, Petaluma

Medical office space needed in Petaluma near Petaluma Valley Hospital for physician to see patients, no staff needed. Need one day a week, Monday or Thursday. Contact Tammy at 707-252-8407 or nvna@napanet.net.

Office space needed, Santa Rosa

Medical office space needed in Santa Rosa for physician to see women’s health patients. Need one day a week. Contact Kristyn at 415-827-9945.

SCMA members get free classifieds!

SCMA members can place free classified ads in News Briefs or Sonoma Medicine. Cost for nonmember physicians and the general public is $1 per word. To place a classified ad, contact Erika Goodwin at erika@scma.org or 707-548-6491.

APPLICANTS

Ali Sina Bari, MD, Plastic Surgery, 145 Foss Creek Cir., Healdsburg 95448, Stanford Univ 2006

Jose Chibras, MD, Internal Medicine, 1179 N. McDowell Blvd., Petaluma 94954, Michigan State Univ 1990

Rafael Fletes, MD, Nephrology, 2301 Circadian Way #A, Santa Rosa 95407, Univ Chicago 1991

Helena Longin, MD, Dermatology, 3883 Airway Dr. #130., Santa Rosa 95403, Pennsylvania State Univ

Erin Lunde, MD, Family Medicine, 3569 Round Barn Cir., Santa Rosa 95403, Harvard Med Sch 2005

Jalet Ontanillas, MD, Internal Medicine, 3925 Old Redwood Hwy., Santa Rosa 95403, West Visayas State Univ 2000

Majonel Ontanillas, MD, Internal Medicine*, 401 Bicentennial Way, Santa Rosa 95403, Celon Institute Med 1992

Jean Talleyrand, MD, Family Medicine, 5202 Old Redwood Hwy., Santa Rosa 95403, Boston Univ 1995

* board certified

ABOUT SCMA

The Sonoma County Medical Association, a 501(c)(6) nonprofit association, supports local physicians and their efforts to enhance the health of the community. Founded in 1858, SCMA is affiliated with the California Medical Association and the American Medical Association.

© 2012 SCMA, 2901 Cleveland Ave. #202, Santa Rosa, CA 95403