Advocacy Alert Reminder: Nursing independence bills get State Capitol hearings next week

State Capitol Offices Need to Hear from Physicians
Next week the State Capitol will host two public hearings on proposals that would allow certain nurses to provide patient care independent of any physician oversight. The companion bills, Senate Bill 394 and Assembly Bill 396, will get public hearings next Wednesday and Thursday in the Senate Health committee and Assembly Health Committee respectively.

Various nursing organizations are pushing the 70-page proposal as a “Modernization Act” for Advanced Practice Registered Nurses (APRN) and allege that nurses such as certified nurse midwives and nurse practitioners should not be required to have any relationship with a physician when providing care to patients. Some elements in the proposal include:

• eliminating requirements that APRNs (certified nurse-midwives, certified registered nurse anesthetists, clinical nurse specialists and nurse practitioners) collaborate with physicians,
• writing into the statutes the ability for an APRN to assess, diagnose and treat patients – including prescribing most drugs – independently and without input or oversight from a physician,
• mandating that the state "opt out" of federal certified registered nurse anesthetist supervision requirements, and
• eliminating current law requiring certified nurse midwives to have a collaborative arrangement with a physician who has experience with obstetrics.

Nurses are actively calling and/or emailing their state legislators, claiming that nurses can match the quality of physician care at a cheaper cost. Legislators must hear from their respected physician constituents that:

• Wisconsin’s high quality health care system is rooted in physician-led, team-based care, and
• Wisconsin’s patients deserve to receive care from the most highly-educated and fully-trained professionals: physicians.

You can find your elected officials’ contact information on the State Legislature’s home page by putting your voting address in the “Who Are My Legislators?” box on the right side of the page. Join the Advocacy in Action group in WisMed Community to stay up to date on important issues and contact Society Chief Policy and Advocacy Officer Mark Grapentine, JD for more information.

Back to top

Foundation to present Kenneth M. Viste, Jr., MD, Young Physician Leadership Award to Derrick Siebert, MD

The Wisconsin Medical Society Foundation (Foundation) will honor Derrick Siebert, MD, with the Kenneth M. Viste, Jr., MD, Young Physician Leadership Award at the Aspirus Wausau Hospital Birthing Center and NICU at 11:30 a.m. on Friday, July 23, 2021. The Kenneth M. Viste, Jr., MD, Young Physician Leadership Award is presented annually to a young physician who demonstrates commitment to patients, the medical profession and the community. Paul Larson, MD, a Wisconsin Medical Society Board member and a longtime colleague, friend and neighbor of Dr. Viste joined Bill Johnston, MD, of Aspirus in nominating Dr. Siebert. He believes that Dr. Viste would have been proud to have Dr. Siebert receive the award that bears his name.

Marje Murray, Executive Director of the Foundation stated that she has learned how important physician advocacy was to Dr. Viste and feels that Dr. Siebert has exemplified that quality and has already been a tireless physician advocate for the profession and his specialty. She can’t wait to see what he does next.

Dr. Siebert is a board-certified Radiologist with Aspirus Health at Radiology Associates of Wausau, Aspirus Ironwood Hospital and Aspirus Wausau Hospital. He is a local, state and national leader in the Wisconsin Radiological Society, American College of Radiology and is a member of the Wisconsin Medical Society. Outside of his extensive medical-related activities, Dr. Siebert lends his time and skills to many community activities including serving as Education Officer for the Central Wisconsin Chapter of the US Power Squadron, previously leading a STEM group for the Boy Scouts and working with a local archery club to safely introduce children to the sport.

“This is a great honor for one of our physicians to receive this award,” said Aspirus Vice President and Senior System Physician Executive of Tertiary Care Ryan Andrews, MD. “Dr. Siebert’s hard work and dedication to his profession goes a long way in helping Aspirus provide top health care to the communities we serve.”

Dr. Siebert expressed his appreciation to the Wisconsin Medical Society Foundation stating, “A person like Dr. Viste, who leaves the kind of legacy he did, serves as a positive example for young physicians such as myself to strive towards. It reminds me that while some things may change in medicine, paper charts to computer, manual stethoscopes to electronic, the important things like taking the best care of your patients remain unchanged.” This award comes with a donation made in honor of the recipient to a non-profit of their choosing. The Foundation is pleased to present a donation in Dr. Siebert’s honor to the Aspirus Wausau Hospital Birthing Center and NICU.

Back to top

COVID-19 Task Force update

David Letzer, DO, Chair of COVID Task Force & Ryan Westergaard, MD, Phd, MPH, state Chief Medical Officer during a recent task force meeting

Wisconsin Medical Society Members formed a COVID-19 Task Force more than a year ago that has since been interacting with experts and state leaders, educating the public and keeping Wisconsin’s physicians up to date on the pandemic. 

The Task Force created and aggregated a library of COVID-19 resources, including:

• Pharmacotherapy reference sheet, updated regularly
• Vaccine reference sheet
• COVID-19 risk chart for patients
• Links to Patient Education materials
• COVID-19 buttons to encourage conversations between physicians and patients, created in partnership with the Pharmacy Society of Wisconsin
• created a series of PSAs by partnering with organizations including the Stop the COVID Spread! Coalition, the Wisconsin Nurses Association and the AMA

The COVID-19 Task Force will continue to work to keep physicians informed, educate patients and increase vaccination rates in Wisconsin as the pandemic continues.

Learn more about the COVID-19 Task Force’s accomplishments via these Medigram stories:

• Dec. 10, 2020: SARS CoV-2 CME series (available on-demand)
• Sept. 24, 2020: Review DHS alert on antigen testing
• May 6, 2021: Help increase vaccine uptake in Wisconsin
• Jan. 21, 2021: Weighs in on vaccine distribution
  

Contact Society Chief Policy and Advocacy Officer Mark Grapentine, JD for additional information.

Back to top

State Medical Examining Board welcomes new members

The state of Wisconsin Medical Examining Board (MEB) greeted three new physician members at its monthly meeting Wednesday, July 21, will all three starting a four-year term on the regulatory board. The new members are anesthesiologist and pain medicine physician Kris Ferguson, MD, radiologist Derrick Siebert, MD, and orthopedic surgeon Gregory Schmeling, MD.

In other business, the MEB continued its discussion on possible new regulatory language related to microdermabrasion, dermaplaning and microblading as initially drafted by the Cosmetology Board (first reported in the June 17 Medigram). Speaking for the Wisconsin Dermatological Society (WDS), Medical College of Wisconsin Associate Professor Edit Olasz Harken, MD, PhD, shared concerns over any regulatory changes that would allow procedures affecting living layers of the skin. After a deeper discussion about the various issues involved, the MEB created a subgroup comprised of an MEB physician, the WDS and a member of the Cosmetology Board to seek consensus on administrative code updates that will protect patients/clients from harm.

MEB chair Sheldon Wasserman, MD, also indicated that he wants to spend time at the body’s August meeting to move forward on a potential rule that would require physicians to have (or offer to have) a chaperone when performing certain sensitive exams (see the April 22 Medigram for additional background). The idea has received little full MEB discussion since first raised conceptually in April. If the MEB does officially move forward with the rule – which would be placed in the MEB’s “Unprofessional Conduct” section of the administrative code – there will be opportunity for public comment.

Contact Society Chief Policy and Advocacy Office Mark Grapentine, JD for additional information.

Back to top

Dr. Petty to head new fellowship program which aims to transform health equity for LGBTQ+ community

The University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health (UWSMPH) will be the first institution to participate in the American Medical Association’s new National LGBTQ+ Fellowship Program, which is designed to improve medical care provided to LGBTQ+ people in the US. UWSMPH will establish an advanced fellowship clinical training program for early-career physicians in primary care – who are first-contact for their patients’ medical needs. The goal is that all LGBTQ+ patients receive the highest standards of care.

Congratulations to Elizabeth Petty, MD, Senior Associate Dean for Academic Affairs at UWSMPH and Wisconsin Medical Society Member, who will be the principal investigator and program director for the interdisciplinary fellowship program.

Several studies show that LGBTQ+ individuals experience higher rates of depression, increased suicide risk and reduced access to appropriate and timely preventative health care for chronic diseases such as cancer and heart disease.

“The program’s focus is to train the next generation of physicians to provide high-quality, evidence-based, affirming patient-centered care to urgently address these disparities and to optimize health outcomes,” Dr. Petty said.

The first fellow will begin the year-long training in July 2022 and will receive clinical and classroom training in LGBTQ+ health care and engage in research, teaching, mentoring and community collaborative partnership efforts.

Back to top

OnRamp Healthcare Conference – It was life changing… business changing for sure!

By Shawna Bertalot, CIC, ACI – WisMed Assure President

As we ramp up for the OnRamp Healthcare Conference on August 19, 2021 and the agenda is set, Jennifer Swartz, RN, shared her thoughts on the OnRamp conference. When she attended the 2019 event, she had just launched Conduct RM, her remote cardiovascular implantable electronic device (CIED) monitoring business.

She shared, “I went to OnRamp after starting my company and it was life changing… business changing for sure! Seeing other companies using technology that was already available and repackaging it for a purpose – to meet a need that has been unmet or poorly met – confirmed I was on the right track. The people I met were brilliant at putting all these pieces together to make a difference.

During one of the breakout sessions, I made a connection with a Madison company (Redocs) that was instrumental in helping me learn about and then negotiate with a software company (Insight Connections Group). They helped my business get the technology it needed… we didn’t have to start from scratch.”

Here’s what Jennifer would say to a physician wondering if they should attend. “Attending OnRamp is completely the opposite of normal events. OnRamp is a dynamic conference and nothing is the same from vendor to vendor, start up to start up. Everyone has their own area of expertise that is outside the expertise of physicians. You would never come across these people and these ideas. No one is pitching you; they’re informing and educating.

For any physician, it is an awesome way to get ready to deliver in the future. It gives you an overview of the many options you can use to incrementally keep pace, a smorgasbord of ideas you can pick from and bring back to your practice.”

During our conversation, Jennifer and I agreed that even before the pandemic, the good people delivering health care were being challenged as never before. OnRamp is an opportunity to find new ways to meet today’s challenges and to be prepared for the inevitable new challenges we will see in the future.

“It is hard to change when you are nose to the grindstone… it even feels guilty to go away from your practice. But you do not know what you are missing if you don’t know it exists. At OnRamp, you learn that there is a whole group of people out there trying to deliver care better – more easily, more economically and better for everyone.”

It’s clear that attending OnRamp changed one business’s future, and that business has since been changing people’s lives for the better.

This article was originally posted on July 9, 2021 in FYI: For Your Insurance.

Back to top

Stock market dips or drops

Monday was one of the larger down days for US stocks this year fueled by renewed concerns of COVID’s impact on the global economy. We know there will be declines from time to time, but it still doesn’t feel good. Whether Monday is a short retreat or the start of a longer correction, here’s how you can take advantage of market volatility.

During your working years 
If you’re just saving for retirement, a market correction is one of the best things that can happen. You’re probably thinking this financial planner just lost all credibility. Why would I want to invest and lose money? Simple, buy low and sell high. A drop in the market lowers the price to buy. In fact, we only care about the market being high when it’s time to sell. Until then, low is just fine.

Near or in retirement 
Think of your retirement portfolio in three components investment income (dividends and interest), safer fixed income (bond funds) and growth (stock prices). If there is a prolonged decline in stock prices, you can still utilize investment income and bonds to provide retirement income. See the Chart which shows bond stability vs. stock volatility. When stocks recover, switch to sell stocks “high” for retirement income. A properly diversified portfolio should always have an asset class that is up, so you never sell low.

Relative Stability of Bonds vs. Stocks
Red = US aggregate bond index      Blue = S&P 500 stock index

For personalized help with your investment and retirement planning, please contact Mark Ziety, CFP®, AIF® at 608.442.3750. 

Mark Ziety, CFP®, AIF®
WisMed Financial, Inc. part of the Wisconsin Medical Society.

Back to top