As one of the treating physicians here in Las Vegas, I read with anguish your column of last Sunday. I found myself enraged with the degree of inaccuracy in your recounting of this young lad's medical history, and I was upset at your campaign for an academic medical center based on a blatant disregard for the facts.

Specifically, you stated that the Quigleys "endured a number of infuriating misdiagnoses". As a Pediatric Gastroenterologist with 15 years of experience diagnosing and caring for children with liver maladies, Aidan was referred to me by his Pediatrician. His diagnosis was rapidly made within one week, and appropriate treatment was rendered HERE IN LAS VEGAS. There was no delay once he found his way to me, referred by the very pediatrician you made look so silly by stating that he instructed the parents to "place him in a sunny window". This is a common recommendation for children with more common types of newborn jaundice in the first few weeks of life, such as breast-feeding jaundice.

Next, you misstate the facts when you said that Aidan was "forced to leave Southern Nevada to seek treatment". Once he was diagnosed with biliary atresia, he underwent the "temporary surgical fix" you credit to UCLA, RIGHT HERE IN NEVADA, at Sunrise Children's Hospital, by a fellowship-trained, experienced Pediatric Surgeon (by the way, we have five right here in Las Vegas, while UCLA has but three).

When it became obvious that the "temporary fix" was not going to prevent Aidan from needing a liver transplant, he was expeditiously referred by me to one of the largest pediatric liver transplant programs in the U.S. (UCLA, where I trained) but NEVER did he receive any surgery there, nor did he receive any pre-or post-operative care there. In fact, he spent the next 16 months waiting on their cadaveric transplant list, while he received ALL of his care here by me, including intravenous nutrition support, frequent hospitalizations for infection, and all monitoring necessary for a sick child with liver disease.

As Aidan's appearance and growth suffered, so did his family, uprooting grandparents here from Northern California, interfering regularly with both Dale and Tina's work schedules, and finally culminating in Tina being evaluated at UCLA as a potential living-related donor for Aidan. When UCLA evaluated Tina, they felt her vascular anatomy was not favorable for a good outcome for Aidan, and thus refused to perform the LRD option for them. After several more months hoping against hope that Aidan would rise to the top of the waiting list for a cadaveric donor organ, they were referred by me to Children's Hospital of Los Angeles, where our group has had recent success with a few patients we referred there. The transplant surgeon at CHLA disagreed with UCLA's opinion and offered to use Tina as a donor for Aidan, which is exactly what happened in early July, with a positive result as of this writing.

As the "local physician" referred to in the article, who reportedly "didn't appear to be aware" of other options for them, I can assure you that this is totally false and the Quigley's can attest to many conversations I had with them over the months about additional centers with additional experience such as Stanford, San Diego, Baylor in Texas, and eventually CHLA.

As a physician here in Clark County for the past 12 years, I can attest to the outstanding resources we have here in almost all areas of specialty Pediatrics. I can attest to the usefulness of an academic medical center model, and am supportive of such a concept. The way in which we get there may be up for some debate, but I believe the concept would be helpful. However, I base my perception on factual information, not on missives aimed at attacking the high quality physicians we already have here in Southern Nevada.

In summary, Aidan Quigley received the highest quality of care right here in Las Vegas, was only sent elsewhere for the actual transplant, and is one of hundreds of similar success stories we in the Pediatric medical community here don't publicly boast about. To give the wrong impression of our health care resources in Southern Nevada does a disservice to the patients, families, and community that we serve and I strongly urge you to correct the inaccuracies in your column.

Signed by

Howard Baron, M.D., F.A.A.P.

Associate Professor of Pediatrics,

University of Nevada School of Medicine Chief of Pediatrics, Sunrise Children's Hospital Clinical Instructor,

David Geffen School of Medicine, UCLA

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President’s Message

By Ron Kline, MD, 2005-2006 CCMS President

Every Day, We Get Better in Every Way

I wasn't sure whether to begin this column with a quote from Rodney Dangerfield or Marie Antoinette. "I don't get no respect" and "let them eat cake" both seemed apropos when attempting to characterize the way our medical community is perceived by some of Nevada's politicians and press (although, thankfully, not by our patients).

It's hard to read or watch a discussion about the proposed academic medical center (AMC) without hearing that several thousand Nevadans leave the state each year for medical care. A study in 2002 by the INNOVA group showed that 3% of hospitalized Nevadans received care out of state, while 9% of our total hospital admissions were from out of state residents. Thus, one could objectively say that three times as many people come to Nevada for medical care as leave the state. One never reads that latter statistic, only the numbers about those who leave (I am shocked, shocked to note that politicians and the press manipulate facts to support their own biases and serve their own agendas). Furthermore, in a geographically large state such as ours, with tertiary care available only in the southern tip of the state, it is not surprising or disappointing to see people who live in Washoe or Carson county travel to Sacramento or San Francisco for some of their care, or that the population of Ely or Elko travels to Salt Lake City for some of its more sophisticated care.

Some people who leave the state for medical care do so because their insurance company is contracted with large tertiary care institutions for single event, high cost medical care. Like it or not, when it comes to high dollar procedures such as bone marrow transplantation, we compete with the Los Angeles market. The LA market is full of large tertiary care institutions scrambling to cover their high fixed costs. Attracting Las Vegas patients is one way of doing that. One of my own patients recently fought her insurance company so her son could receive a bone marrow transplant here in Las Vegas. She had to sign a release of liability letter from the company saying that they were not liable if an adverse event occurred (he did, in fact, receive his born marrow transplant here, and has done well). Our pediatric oncology practice has lost other patients to the Southern California "market". These families desperately wanted to stay close to home, but were forced by their insurance company to leave town. I recently discussed with an influential legislator the sponsorship of limited "any willing provider" legislation for the 2007 session. The legislation would force insurance companies to allow their patients to stay within Nevada if the service could be provided within the state for the same cost and at the patient's request.

Our press corps loves to cite repeatedly the few, high profile old time Nevadans who go out of state for medical care, while the vast majority of our residents stay within the state and receive excellent care. Perhaps they remember a time (about two million people ago) when Las Vegas was a small, hot, dusty desert outpost without a sophisticated medical community. Over these last several decades, however, young (now middle-aged) well-trained physicians have moved to Las Vegas seeking opportunities to build a practice not readily available in more medically crowded areas. As the base of specialists has grown, and successive tertiary care programs have been established, it has become easier to recruit the physicians needed for a sophisticated medical community.

Unfortunately, our politicians and some of the press have not kept up with the times. They talk amongst themselves in small elite circles, not really aware of the day-to-day lives of their constituents and readers. Sometimes, when I see those statements and read those articles, I feel sad that I have chosen to practice in a place where I am assumed to be incompetent by virtue of being a "Las Vegas physician". But then I return to my real world (and that of most of my colleagues) of grateful patients, who are happy to see me, and appreciative of the work I do every day. I currently care for a child who was diagnosed with leukemia several days before the father was to be transferred out of state. The house was sold, the belongings packed. The family chose to stay in Nevada, cancel the job transfer and lease a house; comfortable in the care that I, a Las Vegas physician, could provide. The sincere magnitude of that compliment could sustain me through a dozen insincere politicians leaving town for treatment.

We lament the fact that Las Vegas does not have a "world-class" AMC such as UCLA. As a UCLA alumna myself (BA '81, MD '85), I have always pointed out to anyone who will listen that UCLA started out in the 1950's as a small hospital and medical school and has grown into the institution it is today because of a half century of consistent state support. No doubt, southern Californians could have contracted with Harvard or Johns Hopkins at that time and had its world-class AMC sooner, but that is not how community leaders in most places think. In most OTHER communities, local leaders, identifying a need, would join together to develop the support to build their own AMC, recruiting the necessary physicians to their area. (My compliments to Chancellor Jim Rogers for showing his loyalty as a true Nevadan by working so hard to support a locally controlled AMC).

Nevada, with a median family income (MFI) of $44,646 (essentially the same as the MFI of the United States), is one of only four other states (Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming) without an AMC. Poorer states in our region such as New Mexico (MFI of $36,043) and Arizona (MFI of $41,995) have been able to summon the political will to accomplish this feat. Alabama, a state where the MFI is just 82% of Nevada's, has been able to find the funds to build and support two AMCs, one in Birmingham and one in Mobile. Some of our community leaders seem to have an inferiority complex about Las Vegas that is not shared by their readers and constituents. I guess they have just lived here too long.

Regardless of the form that an AMC takes in Las Vegas, or whether it takes any form at all; our medical community will continue to grow and prosper as our region grows and prospers. We will continue to recruit well-trained specialists to our area and will continue to develop additional tertiary care services. The few aging politicians and community leaders who continue to travel out of state for their medical care will increasingly be viewed as irrelevant anachronisms from a bygone time (think Bugsy Siegel), while the vast majority of southern Nevadans happily receive their excellent care close to home. To those of our "leaders" who leave town for medical care because what is good enough for their community is not good enough for them "let them eat cake."

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Clark County District Court Medical Malpractice Filings

Against Health Care Providers, Jan 2001 – August 2005

2001 2002 2003 2004 2005

Jan 39 33 108 61 41

Feb 20 14 98 72 63

Mar 35 30 169 123 64

Apr 37 34 111 81 70

May 37 35 126 65 14

Jun 27 24 103 90 65

Jul 19 100 114 45 66

Aug 54 51 76 67 33

Sep 20 65 105 79

Oct 37 83 110 59

Nov 38 184 59 78

Dec 9 170 67 47

Sum 372 823 1246 867

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New Members

Congratulations and Welcome to the Clark County Medical Society New Members – August 2005

Waldo C Feng, MD Pediatric Urology 3201 S Maryland Pkwy 406 Las Vegas, NV 89109

James C Plaire, MD Pediatric Urology 3201 S Maryland Pkwy 406 Las Vegas, NV 89109

Lawrence K Sands, DO Preventive Med/Public Health 625 Shadow Ln Las Vegas, NV 89106

Scott L Selco, MD Neurology 3186 S Maryland Pkwy Henderson, NV 89052

Michael J Wile, MD Anatomic/Clinical Pathology 4230 Burnham Ave Las Vegas, NV 89119

Christian Yi, MD Diagnostic Radiology 2020 Palomino Ln 100 Las Vegas, NV 89106

Congratulations and Welcome to the Clark County Medical Society New Student Members – August 2005

Michael C Yeates Touro University
Jordan A Caplan University of Nevada
Lawrence R Huff, Jr University of Nevada
Kate E Martin University of Nevada

Applicants To Go Before Credentialing Committee

If you have any pertinent information about the following membership candidates, please contact:

Clark County Medical Society, 2590 E. Russell Rd., Las Vegas, NV 89120

· Arthur M Cambeiro, MD Plastic Surgery

· Terrence B Higgins, MD Plastic Surgery

· Tony Y Maung, MD Radiology

· John Oh, MD Radiology

· Gary D Wright, MD Ob-Gyn

For information on becoming a member of the Clark County Medical Society, call Marlaina Burns at 739-9989.

***New Member Special*** $390 New members can join for half price their first year.

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“Dear Doctor”

The Clark County Medical Society's Community Health/Community Relations Committee is developing a weekly column called "Dear Doctor" with the Las Vegas Review-Journal. We encourage any interested physician members to submit a brief article on a mainstream health topic of your choice. If you would like to submit an article for publication in our new "Dear Doctor" column with the R-J, please submit it to the Clark County Medical Society.

Specifications: Articles should be of 750 words or less. The articles should be placed in the form of a Question/Answer and printed for legibility.

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MEDICAL ARBITRATION AGREEMENTS STATUS

By Weldon (Don) Havins, M.D., Esq., CEO, Special Counsel

An unknown, but apparently substantial, number of Nevada physicians are offering arbitration agreements to their patients in an effort mutually to avoid the horrendous cost and time associated with traditional trial court litigation in the event of a dispute alleging medical malpractice. Medical malpractice lawsuits, where the alleged negligent conduct occurred before October 1, 2002, have five years from the date of filing in District Court to begin a court trial. Alleged negligent conduct occurring between October 1, 2002 and October 1, 2005, which serves as the basis for a medical malpractice lawsuit must be brought to trial within three years from the date of filing the case in District Court. Conduct which occurrs after October 1, 2005 which serves as the basis for a medical malpractice lawsuit, requires the trial to commence within two years of the date the case is filed in District Court. While no cases have been filed under the two year trial deadline, just moving from the five year to the three year time limitation has caused great congestion in the medical malpractice case court trial calendars. Medical malpractice cases are crowding out other civil cases for trial time. However, disputes subject to arbitration agreements are not subject to court trials and therefore can be heard and concluded in a much more efficient manner, for both plaintiff and defendant.

In the last two years, defendants in medical malpractice actions have enjoyed an unprecedented success rate at trials in Clark County District Court. While defendants in such cases have usually enjoyed a 60% rate of favorable verdicts, in the last two years anecdotal evidence indicates that the favorable jury verdict rates are in the 85% to 90% range. The CCMS staff is aware of only one verdict in the last two years, against a physician over $1 million dollars, and that verdict was in Washoe County against a group of emergency medicine specialists. Apparently, there was an $11 million dollar verdict in Fallon, Nevada, as a result of an adverse obstetric outcome, but that also involved the local hospital. Thus, while arbitration contracts avoid court trials and unpredictable juries, in the last two years Clark County juries have strongly favored defendant doctors.

Three years ago, arbitration contracts became popular with physicians, particularly in "high risk" specialties. Jury verdicts in 2001 alone in Clark County accounted for over $22 million dollars. Jury verdicts from the years 1996 through 2000 totaled together $21 million. Skyrocketing professional liability insurance premiums and fears of "out of control juries" prompted many physicians to begin offering their patients arbitration contracts to settle potential disputes over medical services rendered. Many physicians utilized a modification of an arbitration contract modeled upon the California arbitration agreement (California Code of Civil Procedure section 1295). This contract provides that "any dispute as to medical malpractice, that is, as to whether any medical services rendered under this Contract were unnecessary or unauthorized or were improperly, negligently or incompetently rendered, will be determined by submission to arbitration as provided in Nevada law, and not by lawsuit or resort to court process except as Nevada law provides for judicial review of arbitration proceedings". The California medical arbitration contract provides a 30 day period from the time of signature for either party to rescind the contract. Most Nevada medical arbitration contracts do the same. This provides time for either party to change his or her mind and rescind the contract.

No contract is valid if it is obtained under duress (in an emergency room just before surgery) or as a result of coercion. The provision of medical services cannot be based on whether a patient does or does not sign an arbitration agreement. However, unless contractually bound to see a particular patient (a provider under a capitated contract with a managed care organization), a physician is free to provide, or not provide, professional services to any particular patient. Similarly, a patient not part of a capitated managed care plan requiring the patient to see a specific physician is free to utilize, or not utilize, the professional services of any particular physician. Physicians have free choice and patients have free choice. A physician may discharge a patient or refuse to refuse to provide services for "no reason", but may not discharge a patient or refuse to accept a patient for reasons of race, alienage, nationality, or legitimacy. Unless the physician's practice is that of a specific gender (i.e., females for OBs), a physician should not discriminate on the basis of gender.

CCMS was unable to find any Nevada Supreme Court case regarding refusal of a patient to see a patient based on unconstitutional discrimination. There was a case in 1986 in which an arbitration contract was held invalid where the physician obtained the arbitration contract at the time of an emergency, and there was no provision in the agreement for the patient to rescind the contract within a specified period of time. Physicians utilizing an arbitration agreement based on the California statutory contract, which provides for a 30 day period to rescind, should prevail in any coercion challenge to the contract.

Nevada case law often follows California Courts' decisions. A recent California case, Reigelsperger v. Siller, from the Third District Court of Appeals, decided in January 2005, addressed the validity of a medical Arbitration Agreement which complied with the California law. In this case, a patient saw a physician for an acute back injury. The patient paid the fee and the physician asked the patient to sign an informed consent which included an arbitration agreement. More than two years later, the patient sought treatment by the same physician for another injury unrelated to the first injury. When this treatment was unsuccessful, the patient sued for medical malpractice in the appropriate court. The physician filed a motion to have the case decided by arbitration per the previous agreement. The patient contended that the arbitration agreement applied only to the first injury and not to the subsequent unrelated injury because there had been no continuous physician-patient relationship. The court noted that the patient had paid in full for the care he received from the physician on the day he received care for the first injury, more than two years previously, and had not seen the physician again until the second injury occurrence. The court held that the physician-patient relationship had lapsed and that the new unrelated injury required another arbitration agreement to bind the patient to arbitration.

Considering the California case, Nevada physicians seeing a patient for an unrelated medical problem after a period of time in which the patient-physician relationship could be considered to have lapsed, should have the patient sign another arbitration agreement. For many physicians' practices, that period of time might be considered to be one year. Alternatively, considering the prevalence of Clark County jury verdicts in favor of the defendant health care providers in the last two years, perhaps arbitration agreements may no longer be the preferred option.

For those Clark County physicians considering using arbitration agreements, a template for an agreement is appended to this article. This agreement should not be considered legal advice or even legally adequate. Physicians should consult their own attorney for the sufficiency and legality, as well as advisability of utilizing arbitration agreements in their medical practice.

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CCHD Report

By Donald Kwalick, MD, MPH, Chief Health Officer

The Clark County Health District is advising Southern Nevadans to "Can It!" The health district is urging the public to be prepared in the event of a natural or man-made disaster by assembling a personal preparedness kit in a container such as a new plastic garbage can with a sealable lid.

As part of this campaign the health district conducted a survey of Clark County residents. More than 60 percent of those surveyed felt they were "somewhat" or "very" prepared for a large-scale community emergency. However, almost 65 percent of those same respondents indicated they do not have a family preparedness kit in their home.

It is clear the public needs to be better informed in order to fully understand what being prepared entails. The unfortunate events in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina have served to underscore the importance of having personal emergency supplies and the public has been very receptive to our message. Additionally, people who are equipped to take care of their own immediate needs assist the overall response effort by freeing up first responders to care for those with more critical needs.

Public health and health care professionals should be setting an example for their friends and families. The health district is actively urging employees to put together personal kits and to have a personal disaster readiness plan to ensure their families know what to do, where to go and who they can contact in the event of an emergency.

By being personally prepared our employees will be better prepared to effectively respond to an emergency or disaster knowing their loved ones are safe. Components of the plan should include:

· Designated meeting points - one outside your home in case of a fire and one outside your neighborhood in case you can't get home.

· Local and out-of-state contacts for family members to call.

· A set location for posting emergency numbers.

· Know how to shut off your home's water, gas electricity at main switches.

· Be prepared for special needs of children, the elderly or disable person who are under your care and ensure you have needed items in your readiness kit.

· Make sure your family is familiar with all aspects of the plan.

In addition to urging the public to make their readiness plans, the health district continues its work and planning activities to ensure we are ready to meet the public health needs of the community in the event of an emergency.

These activities include plans to distribute medication to the entire population of Clark County in locations throughout the city. These planning activities are an integral part of the federal Cities Readiness Initiative. The CRI is a pilot program to aid cities in increasing their capacity to deliver medicines and medical supplies during a large-scale public health emergency such as a bioterrorist attack or a nuclear accident. Las Vegas was one of 20 cities chosen to participate in this pilot program.

The health district will continue to seek out opportunities to educate the public on the role they play in an emergency and in ensuring their own safety, as well as on the activities of the health district and our efforts to ensure their well-being during a public health emergency.

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2005-06 CLARK COUNTY MEDICAL SOCIETY COMMITTEES

Bylaws, Policies and Procedures

1. Warren Evins, MD - Chair

2. Lubna Ahmad, MD

3. Shamoon Ahmad, MD

4. Max Doubrava, MD

5. Aury Nagy, MD

6. Chandra Narala, MD

7. Joram Seggev, MD

Building Committee

1. John Nowins, MD - Chair

2. Florence Jameson, MD

Community Health/ Community Relations

1. Jerry Jones, MD - Chair

2. Farooq Abdulla, MD

3. George Alexander, MD

4. LeRoy Bernstein, MD

5. Alvin Blumberg, MD

6. Michael Colletti, MD

7. Florence Jameson, MD

8. Beata Kwiatkowska, MD

9. Chandra Narala, MD

10. Marietta Nelson, MD

11. Joram Seggev, MD

12. Irwin Simon, MD

CME Committee

1. Ed Kingsley, MD - Chair

2. Michael Gross, MD

3. Joram Seggev, MD

Credentials Committee

1. Carol VanderHarten, MD - Chair

2. Bashir Chowdhry, MD

3. Jeffrey Cichon, MD

4. Noel Harrison, MD

5. John Kurlinski, MD

6. Chandra Narala, MD

Government Affairs

1. Ron Kline, MD - Chair

2. Sameer Abu-Samrah, MD

3. Hugh Bassewitz, MD

4. Keith Brill, MD

5. Max Doubrava, MD

6. Charles Graham, MD

7. Lonnie Hammargren, MD

8. Robert Kaplan, DO

9. Ed Kingsley, MD

10. Garn Mabey, MD

11. Marietta Nelson, MD

12. Robert Shreck, MD

Membership Committee

1. Mark Doubrava, MD - Chair

2. Baljit Deol, MD

3. Aury Nagy, MD

4. Chandra Narala, MD

Mini-Internship Committee

1. Florence Jameson, MD - Chair

2. LeRoy Bernstein, MD

3. Jeffrey Cichon, MD

4. Paul Michael, MD

Nominating Committee

1. Frank Nemec, MD - Chair

2. Michael Colletti, MD

3. Warren Evins, MD

4. Ed Kingsley, MD

5. Ronald Slaughter, MD

6. Annette Teijeiro, MD

7. Michael Verni, MD

Note: You must have served on a committee within the past 5 years to be considered by the Nominating Committee for a position on the Board of Trustees

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Alliance Message

By Shanila Choudhury, 2005-06 CCMS Alliance President

I would like to welcome everyone back from vacation and back to school. This is when CCMSA begins our new year. Look forward to our many charity projects. At our luncheons this year we want our members to be aware of their own health and will have Susan G. Komen speaking about preventative measures.

To start the year off we are working with the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation by doing a Breast Cancer Awareness month fundraiser at Red Rock Country Club on October 18, 2005 at 11:30 am. This will be open to the public so tell your friends. We are hoping to have the Chippendales there to have your picture with to help our charity. Don't miss this one.

Here is a message from our hard working membership committee:

Dear Members and future Members,

We would like to welcome all of our current and future members. As your co-first Vice Presidents of membership, Estela Hansen, Cheryl Samlaska and Peggy Ho, we would like to thank our past members for renewing their membership and look forward to meeting more new members this upcoming year. The deadline to join and have your name in the directory will be October 15, 2005.

We would like to encourage our members to renew and mail the application and membership dues of $80.00 to:

Tammy Johnson

5621 N. Bonita Vista St.

Las Vegas, Nevada 89149

We especially invite those members that have participated in the past and did not renew their membership last year. We need your support and we count on you to participate so that the Alliance can continue to serve our community as it has done so every year.

For those members that are not familiar with the Clark County Medical Society Alliance (Alliance), let us introduce it as an organization which is primarily a service organization who focuses on the health related needs of our community. The Alliance either initiates its own projects or provides volunteer hours and monetary assistance to charitable organizations or groups.

Some examples are community health events, nursing awards, Spring Fashion Show Fundraiser and the Greeting Card Project. This year, we have chosen the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, Las Vegas Affiliate as our main charity.

So if you have retired from your first career and are now dedicating your time to your family, the Alliance is a perfect opportunity to be in a purposeful, leadership position. On the other hand, if you just want to relax and come enjoy our luncheons, see your friends, and meet new people, we would love to have you as part of this wonderful organization.

We are very excited about this upcoming year for the Alliance. We have many exciting events planned and we are looking forward to enjoying this year with all of you. Your ideas and suggestions are always welcome to any of our board members.

Please call or email Estela Hansen at 496-0456, estelahansen@cox.net or Cheryl Samlaska at 897-6771, ckmsamlaska@aol.com with any questions, comments or concerns.

We hope that everyone has a fun summer and we look forward to seeing you at the luncheon meetings.

Sincerely,

Estela Hansen, Cheryl Samlaska, Peggy Ho

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Nevada State Medical Association’s 102nd Annual Meeting and Scientific Session

Mark Your Calendars! April 27-30, 2006 at the Alexis Park Resort in ***Las Vegas, Nevada***

This is the first time in years that this meeting will be held in Las Vegas. We need Delegates. We hope to have the best attendance ever. The number of Delegates we are allowed is based on a percentage of our membership. Last year we could have had 36 Delegates and we only had 11. This annual meeting determines the policies and programs of the Association. Listed below is a sample of what happens at the annual event:

1. A half day Scientific Session

2. President’s Luncheon (usually has an interesting speaker)

3. Very Informative Governmental Affairs Meeting

4. Reference Committee meetings where resolutions are discussed and perfected to become policy

5. Dinner and Awards ceremony where the NSMA and NSMAA Presidents are inaugurated

This year the Delegation Chair for CCMS is Dr. Marietta Nelson. Please call Dot Freel at 739-9989 to sign up or get more information.

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Minutes Synopsis

CLARK COUNTY MEDICAL SOCIETY

Executive Council MEETING

Tuesday, August 16, 2005; 6:00 P.M.

Minutes Synopsis

The minutes for the July meeting were approved unanimously.

AMC Information

Dr. Kingsley gave a brief outline regarding Mayor Goodman's desire to build an AMC in Las Vegas and the progress of the meetings which have been held.

Dr. Forman and Dr. Harter gave a brief, very informative presentation on Academic Medical Centers.

The four top executives of the major hospital systems in Las Vegas were invited by Dr. Kline. The hospital representatives plan to attend the Board of Regents meeting on September 23. Dr. Kline invited one or all of them to again attend the next Board meeting at CCMS on September 20 to give a more defined overview of what they plan to present to the Board of Regents.

There was a discussion on the resolution to support the creation of a President of Health Sciences who will report directly to the Chancellor of UCCSN.

Financial Report

The revenue was $15,958.73 for the first month of the new fiscal year which was less than last year at this time. A reduction in dues collected in the month accounted for the difference. Total expenses were $22,583.26 which constituted a reduction over last year at this time. The bank account balance at the end of the month was $296,027.71, up substantially from the balance this time last year.

Credentials Report

There were two Student Members approved for membership: Michael C. Yeates - Touro University and Jordan A. Caplan - University of Nevada, Reno. There were 4 reinstatements, Robert J. Comeau, MD - Ob-Gyn; Carolyn A. Matzinger, MD - Internal Medicine; Marwan A. Takiyyuddin, MD - Nephrology; and Thomas L. Lambert, MD - Cardiology.

The following 6 members were approved for active membership: Waldo C. Feng, MD - Pediatric Urology; James C. Plaire, MD - Pediatric Urology; Lawrence K. Sands, DO - Preventive Medicine/Public Health; Scott L. Selco, MD - Neurology; Michael J. Wile, MD - Anatomic/Clinical Pathology; and Christian Yi, MD - Diagnostic Radiology.

Membership Report

There were 767 dues paid members, which was an increase over the 755 last year at this time and 112 dues exempt members. There were a total of 879 members. There were 54 new members for the fiscal year and 25 reinstatements.

UNSOM Report

Dr. Lenhart reported that Jim Rogers has mandated that both UNLV and UNR collaborate on health science education. Meetings have been held in furtherance of this effort.

Touro University College of Osteopathic Medicine Report

Dr. Forman stated they have started their second class of 108 medical students and 40 PA students. Next week their entry level masters of nursing and occupational therapy programs will start.

NSMA Report

Dr. Evins stated he still welcomed those interested in serving on the Public Health or Governmental Affairs committees.

AMA Report

The predominate issues at the AMA meeting was the SGR (Sustained Growth Rate formula) and pay for performance (P4P). A Congressional bill has been introduced but some members of the AMA say the bill does not meet the resolutions previously passed by the AMA. Larry Matheis gave a report on the Medicare fee schedule and what was being proposed to fix it.

New Business

Dr. Kline announced that Dr. Montoya was not reappointed to the Nevada State Board of Medical Examiners. A letter of appreciation was to be sent to Dr. Montoya.

Dr. Jones relayed the details on what the R-J newspaper desires for the "Dear Doctor" column: the columns were to be on mainstream topics and 750 words or less and 30-40 columns are needed prior to beginning. Dr. Jones asked each Board member to provide one column to the project.

Dr. Jameson informed the Board that the Mini-Internship will be held in early spring.

Dr. Kingsley accepted the position as Chair of the CCMS CME Committee.

The next BOT meeting will be on Tuesday, September 20, 2005 at 6 pm.

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Classifieds

LOOKING FOR BOARD CERTIFIED PHYSICIANS: in Hematology, Nephrology, Neonatology, Emergency Medicine, Thoracic/CV Surgery, Rheumatology, and Transplants to do chart reviews. URAC accredited Independent Review Organization. Hourly rate. Fax CV to Neva at (702) 385-1312.

physician turned author: death by any means By Leonard Kreisler, MD www.durbanhouse.com (publisher) Available at Barnes and Noble, Walmart.com, Target.com OR inscribed from the author: $14.95 + $3.00 S&H (Total $17.95) to Leonard Kreisler, MD, 2512 Silverton Dr, Las Vegas, NV 89134.

Spanish villa for Sale, costa del sol spain: 2,000sq meters of land, 350 sq meter house, 3 levels, 4 bedrooms, 1 office, 4 baths, olympic size swimming pool, 1 car garage, tropical garden, magnificent view for $635,000. Call Beata Kwiatkowska, MD (702) 228-4483 ext 267 or cell (702) 401-6420.

For Lease: 4000(+/-) sq ft, W Charleston frontage, one story, ample parking, located between Rancho & Campbell. Close to Valley & UMC hospitals and freeways. Call 804-4736 or cell 232-3344.

For Sale: Quinton Treadmill with Defibrillator, 2 couches, equipment cabinet, assorted chairs, small refrigerator, computers, printer, monitors. Neil Carmena, MD at 878-8108.

MOONLIGHT MEDICINE: A unique, well established (8 years) medical house call practice seeking a Nevada licensed FP or GP physician looking to supplement income working 2-3 days per week. Flexible schedule as well as competitive salary; transportation and medical assistant supplied. Fax CV to (702) 974-0108 or call James at (702) 474-6300.

LAS VEGAS FAMILY PRACTICE FOR SALE: Well-established, very successful private practice, near west side. All furnishings and equipment included. Yearly collections $500K with potential growth. Over 5,000 active charts. Owner retiring from private practice but will transition. Phone (702) 364-2044 for more information.

Office space available in Henderson on Horizon Dr & I95: Excellent location, ideal for Primary Care Physician or satellite office for Specialist. Office ready to move in. Fully equipped. Fax inquiries to (702) 567-9003 or call (702)567-9002/(702)604-4448.

HOUSE FOR SALE: Southwest, gated, 5584 square feet, 5 bedrooms, 7 baths, pool, 3 car garage. View at www.circlepix.com (virtual tour #MK4EYB) $1,350,000. Call Jody Lenzie/Century 21 - (702) 499-9494 or (702) 289-2835.

Physician Reviewers Needed: HealthInsight, the Quality Improvement Organization for the Medicare Beneficiaries of the state of Nevada, NEEDS Physician Reviewers. HealthInsight works in partnership with health care providers to improve the quality of healthcare in our state. If interested, please contact: Dr. Shreck at (702) 385-9933.

Members advertise free 3 times a year (up to 40 words). Fax your ad on your letterhead or call Dot Freel for more information 739-9989.

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CME CALENDAR

Bechtel Nevada 295-0208

NV Chapter AACE 434-8400

10/7 thru 10/9 - “Endocrinology for the Non-Endocrinologist (at Hyatt Regency Lake LV) 9.75 CME

Pri-Med Institute (877) 4PRI-MED

Sierra Health Services 242-7735

10/13 - “Domestic Violence”

11/10 - “Improving Your HEDIS Score”

Southern Nevada AHEC 318-8452

Southwest Medical Associates 242-7735

Summerlin Hospital 233-7572

Sunrise Hospital 731-8210

10/25 - “Cardiac Evaluation and Intervention” 1.5 CME

UMC 383-2604

Valley Hospital 388-4847

10/25 - “Caring for the Asthma Patient”

11/22 - “Bipolar Disease”

11/22/05 - “Fibromyalgia: What it is and How it Should be Managed”

Only CME Activities held at the Clark County Medical Society office are specifically endorsed by CCMS.

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Clark County Health District Disease Statistics* - August 2005

CLARK COUNTY HEALTH DISTRICT

DISEASE STATISTICS* - August 200

Contents

Response to Review Journal Column Criticizing Local Pediatric Care