Permanente Leader Jay
Crosson, MD, Named to Medicare Commission
Jay
Crosson, MD, Executive Director of The Permanente Federation, was
recently appointed to the federal Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
(MedPAC) by the Comptroller General of the United States.
MedPAC
is an independent federal body whose mandate is to analyze access to
care, quality of care; and other issues affecting Medicare; and to advise
Congress on payments to health plans participating in the Medicare Advantage
program as well as to providers in Medicare's traditional fee-for-service
program. MedPAC was established by the Balanced Budget Act of 1997.
The Medicare
program is a significant revenue source for Kaiser Permanente (KP),
which has more than 800,000 Medicare members across the program, the
vast majority of whom are enrolled in the Medicare Advantage (formerly
Medicare+Choice) program. KP is the largest health plan participating
in the Medicare Advantage program.
MedPAC's
17 members serve three-year terms, and five or six members terms expire
each year but are subject to renewal. According to the US General Accounting
Office, the law requires MedPAC to include a mix of expertise in the
financing and delivery of health care services and broad geographic
representation. Commissioners include physicians and other health professionals;
employers; third-party payers; researchers with a variety of health-related
expertise; and representatives of consumers, organized labor, and the
elderly.
Dr Nilda Chong Receives
Cultural Competence Award
Nilda
Chong, MD, DrPH, MPH, received The National Minority Health Month
Cultural Competence Award, sponsored by the National Minority Health
Month Foundation. This award is given annually to recognize an individual
or organization that has made outstanding contributions in promoting
cultural competency as a critical part of health care delivery systems
targeting minority communities.
Dr Chong
serves as the director of the KP Institute for Culturally Competent
Care. She is a nationally recognized leader in cultural competence and
multicultural health care and is an expert in cultural competence with
Latino patients and social marketing of health care to Latinos.
Center
for Health Research (CHR)
Center for Health Research
to Receive $3.5 Million Grant to Study Low-Carbohydrate/High-Carbohydrate
Diet
The Center
for Health Research (CHR) has received a $3.5 million grant from the
National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, a branch
of the National Institutes of Health, to conduct a study to determine
the effectiveness and safety of low-carbohydrate versus high-carbohydrate
diets.
The study
will compare the Atkins and DASH diets in a randomized clinical trial
to find out which diet better promotes short-term and long-term weight
loss and which diet reduces or increases risk of cardiovascular disease
and osteoporosis. The results of the study will help clinicians and
nutritionists to give evidence-based advice to patients and will help
the general public to make informed choices.
Hawaii
Permanente Medical Group (HPMG)
Radiologist Appointed
to State Radiologic Technology Board
Congratulations
to Stein Rafto, MD, who was recently appointed to the State of
Hawaii's Radiologic Technology Board.
Mid-Atlantic
Permanente Medical Group (MAPMG)
MAPMG Surgeon Performs
Innovative Cancer Surgery for KP
Jesus
Esquivel, MD, performs an unusual type of cancer surgery at the
Washington Hospital Center. He operates on patients with widespread
appendix and colon cancer in which advanced tumors cannot be treated
with chemotherapy alone. The procedure combines surgery and direct chemotherapy
to the affected area, where he performs cyto-reductive surgery on the
peritoneum and then applies heated chemotherapy to the abdomen. Patients
then receive additional chemotherapy five days after surgery and more
at their home medical center.
Dr Esquivel
learned this procedure from Paul H Sugarbaker, MD, a renowned surgical
oncologist working at the Washington Hospital Center.
Success
rates for this type of procedure are measured by survival. These patients
had no option other than systemic chemotherapy, which is not usually
effective. With this procedure, the survival rate for appendix cancer
is 80% at five years. The survival rate for colon cancer is about 30%
at five years.
KP physicians
from Colorado, California, and Hawaii Regions are now referring patients
to Dr Esquivel. He has published about 12 articles on this subject in
peer-reviewed journals. He has performed 8 of these surgeries in the
last 5 months and expects to perform about 20 this year.
Helping Urology Patients
with the daVinci Robot
KP West
End Medical Center physician Harold Frazier, MD, is one of a
handful of doctors in the country that is using the daVinci robot to
perform urologic surgery. The robot has been used to perform prostate
and kidney surgery.
Only a
couple of dozen hospitals in the country are using the daVinci robot.
Dr Frazier received his initial training on the robot at the Johns Hopkins
surgical laboratory. He is working with the Chair of the urology department
at George Washington University and another physician there to perfect
the use of this new technology in urologic surgery. Dr Frazier also
operates at the Center for Robotic Surgery at George Washington Hospital.
A story
appeared recently in The Washington Post about the daVinci robot.
(http://kpnet.kp.org/mas/index_files/spotlight/daVinci_042604/The_da_Vinci_Mode.doc)
Physician Named Associate
Medical Director of Professional Development
Ann
Hellerstein, MD, was recently named Associate Medical Director of
Professional Development for MAPMG. Dr Hellerstein has been with the
MAPMG for 15 years and has held many positions at KP medical centers
and in professional development.
In her
new role, Dr Hellerstein will be a resource for physician-managers regarding
recruitment and performance management issues. She will continue to
manage Provider Relationships Improve Medical Outcomes (PRIMO) and Continuing
Medical Education (CME) but will have the assistance of another physician-leader
for these programs. She will also oversee the physician performance
evaluation process as well as physician recruitment, orientation, and
retention efforts. Her top priority for 2004 is to revise the physician
performance evaluation process on the basis of feedback from many frontline
physicians and managers. She also plans to revise the MAPMG physician
orientation program. One of her other goals is to help physician-managers
improve their leadership skills.
Southern
California Permanente Medical Group (SCPMG)
Physician Receives First
Annual David M Lawrence, MD, Community Service Sabbatical Award
Jimmy
Hara, MD, FAAFP, Program Director, Family Practice Residency Training
Program, and Regional Director, Graduate Medical Education, Los Angeles,
received the first annual David M Lawrence, MD, Community Service Sabbatical
Award. Dr Hara is recognized for his long history of community service
in the city of Los Angeles. He has volunteered continuously for the
last 30 years in community health centers as a board member and as a
volunteer physician. (See related story.)
Physician Named to US
Preventive Services Task Force
Diana
Petitti, MD, MPH, Director, Research and Evaluation, has been named
a member of the US Preventive Services Task Force. The task force, sponsored
by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality of the US Department
of Health and Human Services, is the leading independent panel of private
sector experts in prevention and primary care and conducts rigorous,
impartial assessments of the scientific evidence for a broad range of
preventive services.
SCPMG Honors 12 Physicians
with Physicians' Exceptional Contribution Award
At a recent
ceremony, SCPMG honored 12 physicians with the Physicians' Exceptional
Contribution Award. This annual award is the highest form of recognition
bestowed on SCPMG physicians. It recognizes those physicians who, in
their daily activities and responsibilities as members of the Medical
Group, go beyond what is expected of them and have made a significant
contribution in one or more of the following areas: expertise within
their profession that is broadly recognized in the Medical Group and
in the medical community; contribution to their community in a civic,
health care, cultural, or general economic sense; or other humanitarian
activities.
Following
are this year's awardees:
- Ruby
Bayan, MD, Psychiatry
- Cheryl
Browne, MD, Internal Medicine
- Richard
Dell, MD, Surgery
- Emil
Dionysian, MD, Orthopedic Surgery
- Robert
M Itami, MD, Pediatrics
- Nathan
D Le, MD, Anesthesiology
- Paul
M Minardi, MD, Family Medicine
- Brian
Saunders, MD, Pediatrics
- Norman
Sogioka, MD, Surgery
- Jan
Takasugi, MD, Surgery
- Thomas
Tom, MD, Internal Medicine
- Frederick
H Ziel, MD, Endocrinology
SCPMG Physician Elected
President of the AAAAI
Michael
Schatz, MD, MS, was elected president of the American Academy of
Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology (AAAAI) at its recent annual meeting
in San Francisco. He will serve a one-year term.
Dr Schatz
is the Chief of the Allergy Department at KP San Diego. He also provides
expertise and leadership with KP's Care Management Institute and is
a Clinical Professor in the Department of Medicine at the University
of California San Diego School of Medicine.
The AAAAI
is the largest professional medical specialty organization in the United
States, representing allergists, asthma specialists, clinical immunologists,
allied health professionals, and others with a special interest in the
research and treatment of allergic disease.
Colorado
Permanente Medical Group (CPMG)
CPMG Honors Physicians
with Permanente Awards
Seven
physicians were recently honored with the Permanente Award for their
collegiality and exceptional clinical skills. The Colorado Permanente
Medical Group received an unprecedented 42 nominations for this prestigious
award. Following are this year's honorees:
- Lillian
M Coppola, MD, Internal Medicine
- Bruce
C Doenecke, MD, Pediatrics
- Royal
K Gerow, MD, Plastic Surgery
- Charles
J Holt, MD, Orthopedics
- Jill
Jamison, MD, Family Practice
- Christopher
Lang, MD, Cardiology
- Donald
L Nicolay, MD, General Surgery
The
Permanente Medical Group (TPMG)
TPMG Exceptional Contribution
Award Winners
The TPMG
Board of Directors established the "Exceptional Contribution Award"
in 2000 to honor physicians who have been instrumental in the development
and dissemination of new ideas that have had a significant impact on
patients, colleagues, and the broader community. The recipients featured
below recently received their awards in recognition of their exceptional
contributions to service and access, quality, or professional satisfaction:
- John
Chuck, MD, Medicine--New Physician Orientation and Mentoring Programs
- Scott
Gee, MD, Pediatrics--Preventive Health Prompt
- Pat
Hybarger, MD, Head and Neck Surgery--Mohs Micrographic Surgery &
Reconstruction Program
- Tim
Tsang, MD, Urology--E-Consult System
Following
are the TPMG Research and Teaching Awards:
Morris
F Collen Research Award
- Arthur
Klatsky, MD, Cardiology (retired)
- Daniel
Klein, MD, Infectious Diseases
Teaching
Excellence Award in Continuing Medical Education
- David
Witt, MD, Infectious Diseases
Teaching
Excellence Award in Graduate
Medical Education
- Gus
Garmel, MD, Emergency
Physician Named President-Elect
of California Medical Association
Michael
Sexton, MD, Emergency, was recently named President-Elect of the
California Medical Association, a position that puts him in line to
become the first Permanente physician to head the statewide organization.
Breast Cancer Stamp Created
by KP Surgeon Lands Top Spot for Postage Stamp Sales
The Breast
Cancer Research Stamp, created by KP surgeon Ernie Bodai, MD, Sacramento,
has overtaken Elvis Presley for the top spot on the all-time sales charts--for
postage stamps.
In 1998,
The Breast Cancer Research Stamp was launched through the efforts of
Dr Bodai. More than 518 million of the stamps have been sold, raising
$37 million for research. The commemorative stamp honoring Elvis, which
is no longer available, sold 517 million copies.
Congress
recently extended the stamp sales through 2005.
The
Southeast Permanente Medical Group (TSPMG)
Bruce Perry, MD, Named
Chairman of Permanente Federation Executive Committee
TSPMG
Medical Director Bruce Perry, MD, was recently named Chairman of the
five-member Permanente Federation Executive Committee. He will serve
a two-year term. Dr Perry succeeds Ronald Copeland, MD, Executive Medical
Director for the Ohio Permanente Medical Group.
The Executive
Committee is made up of four Regional Executive Directors--two from
the California Permanente Medical Groups (PMG) and two elected Executive
Medical Directors from the non-California PMGs--and an appointed Executive
Director, who is responsible for day-to-day activities. In addition
to Drs Perry and Copeland, the five-member group includes Jay Crosson,
MD, Executive Director of The Permanente Federation; Robert Pearl, MD,
Executive Medical Director and CEO, TPMG; and Jeffrey Weisz, MD, Medical
Director of SCPMG.
In his
new role as Chairman of the Permanente Federation Executive Committee,
Dr Perry will be involved in setting agendas for the Executive Committee
and for other national governing groups.
Lee Jacobs, MD, Carries
Olympic Torch
In recognition
of his extensive humanitarian work, Lee Jacobs, MD, Associate Medical
Director of TSPMG, had the honor of carrying the Olympic torch in June
as it traveled through Atlanta, GA, as part of the Athens 2004 Olympic
International Torch Relay. The torch crossed six continents, 27 countries,
and 34 cities, including Los Angeles, St Louis, and New York. Dr Jacobs
was nominated because of his community service work in the inner city
of Atlanta and in Kyrgyzstan. He carried the torch for 1/4 mile through
Atlanta.
| Barbara
Caruso compiled this material from California Wire, Partner
News, and other PMG newsletters and sources. To submit news
of physician or PMG awards and recognitions, contact Ms Caruso
at barbara.caruso@kp.org. |
