The Show-Me-State Update is your source for the latest news and information impacting the medical community. Time-sensitive information and requests related to healthcare, advocacy issues, and professional development opportunities from MAFP are included.

April 2024 – MAFP News & Events

Nominations Due April 30th – MAFP Awards

Do you know a family physician or resident who deserves recognition for their outstanding care, involvement in the community, or leadership in their practice? The Missouri Academy of Family Physicians is accepting nominations for the following awards:

• Family Physician of the Year
• Resident Stipend Award
• Exemplary Teaching Award
• Outstanding Resident of the Year
• Distinguished Service Award

These awards are a way to acknowledge the exceptional work of Missouri’s family physicians who exceed expectations in their practice and communities.

To submit a nomination, visit www.mo-afp.org/join/member-recognition. There, you can find the award criteria, eligibility requirements, and nomination guidelines. The deadline to submit your nomination is April 30, 2024.

Virtual CME

MAFP Members are encouraged to visit https://www.mo-afp.org/cme-events/virtual-cme/, where they can register for upcoming Virtual CME sessions and view information from three Virtual CME sessions that have already been delivered.  Recorded sessions with videos are available on Harm Reduction Strategies for Patients with Opioid Use Disorder, Coronary CT in Chest Pain: A Paradigm Shift, and A Comprehensive Guide to STD Management. Please be aware CME can only be claimed by those who pre-register and view these sessions live.

Transition to Practice Conference for Medical Students and Residents

All Missouri family medicine residents and medical students interested in family medicine are encouraged to attend the Transition to Practice Conference for Medical Students and Residents, June 21-22, 2024, at The Oasis Hotel and Conference Center in Springfield, MO.  With topics such as Practical Finance Tips, Contract Negotiations, Insights from Residency Directors, Exploring Various Practice Settings, a Procedures Workshop on Joint Injections and Implantable Contraception, and more, every participant will leave the conference armed with resources, ideas, and best practices to become a Missouri family physician.  Attendees will also have a chance to meet with residency programs and recruiters during the Missouri Mingle.

Registration for this conference is supported by the Family Health Foundation of Missouri and complimentary for MAFP members. More information and registration can be found at https://www.mo-afp.org/transition-to-practice/.

Complete AAFP’s Member Satisfaction Survey

Share your thoughts and shape AAFP’s future by taking the annual Member Satisfaction Survey, open to all active and resident members through April 15. Let the Academy know how well they meet your needs and where they should focus new work. Take Survey.

Call for Resolutions

The AAFP Congress of Delegates will be held September 23-25 in Phoenix, Arizona.  The Congress of Delegates is the AAFP’s policy-making body and meets to hear addresses from AAFP officers, debate resolutions from chapters, review reports from the Board of Directors and commissions, and elect officers and members to the Board of Directors. If you have a resolution that you would like considered, it must first be submitted to MAFP for consideration.  All resolutions must be submitted online at:  https://www.mo-afp.org/about/congress-of-delegates/ before May 1.  Once submitted, the MAFP Advocacy Commission will review the resolution and, if approved, submit it to the MAFP Board of Directors for approval.

New Missouri Tobacco Quit Services! – Learn more.

Missouri Tobacco Quit Services (MTQS) has many new changes in 2024 including but not limited to a new fax referral number, new provider education training, and a new youth cessation program called My Life My Quit. Missouri Tobacco Quit Services are FREE, confidential, and an effective way to help Missourians quit all forms of tobacco, including e-cigarettes and smokeless tobacco ages 13 and up. New service information and cessation resources can be found here.

• Visit the DHSS TPCP Order Free Materials page to order a variety of free patient education and provider resources for pregnant women, and mothers, as well as materials for youth and adult cessation services. Smoke-free air materials and resources are also available including free outdoor signage.
• Visit the DHSS Website Free Social Media page to view and download free social media content to promote tobacco cessation, secondhand smoke, and tobacco use prevention. This can help your organization raise awareness of the harms of tobacco use in your social media channels. New content is added monthly.

Call for Magazine Articles

MAFP publishes the Missouri Family Physician, a quarterly magazine designed to keep members apprised of Academy activities, up-to-date healthcare-related information, CME and other educational opportunities, as well as news about fellow members throughout the state. The magazine is distributed to over 2,400 physicians, residents, and students. The summer issue will focus on Endocrinology, and the fall Issue will focus on Mental Health.

Family Physicians interested in submitting articles are encouraged to fill out the Article Submission Form for consideration. Medical students and residents are welcome to submit scholarly articles with physician collaboration. Subspecialist physician colleagues are also welcome to submit articles that support family medicine.  Submissions may be considered for CME. Contact MAFP Assistant Executive Director Bill Plank at bplank@mo-afp.org for more info.

All clinical articles will be reviewed by MAFP Member Services and Education Commissions prior to publication.

Maternal Health Access Project

The Maternal Health Access Project (MHAP) is a new statewide perinatal psychiatry access program to receive education and support in treating the mental and behavioral health conditions of their perinatal patients. Providers enrolled in MHAP can access same-day consultation with a perinatal psychiatrist, care coordination services, and educational materials and trainings on topics related to perinatal mental health. For more information on this project, please review the MHAP flyer. You can also register as a perinatal care provider to increase maternal health access in Missouri through universal screening, treatment, and care coordination for mental health, SUD, and other behavioral health conditions.  Questions, contact musompsychiatrymh1@missouri.edu.

AAFP Survey: Consolidation in Health Care

The Government Relations team is collecting information about member experiences with health care consolidation, including practice acquisitions, hospital mergers, or purchases by health care payers or private investors. This information will be shared in response to a request for information from the Federal Trade Commission, Department of Health and Human Services, and Department of Justice on the effects of health care consolidation. The agencies are especially interested in how health care consolidation effects physicians and patients. We know family physicians witness the impacts of mergers and acquisitions up close and can offer invaluable feedback about the effects on the health care workforce, patients, and the local community.  

Please take a moment to complete this confidential survey and share your experience by April 8th.  If you’d like to learn more about the agencies’ request, you can read the full notice here. If you have any other information you’d like to share, please contact Julie Riley at jriley@aafp.org. Feel free to share this survey with other members who may have feedback.   

Survey: Pediatric Emergency Preparedness

One of the Emergency Medicine Fellows at Children’s Mercy Hospital, Kansas City, is surveying ambulatory care providers in Missouri and Kansas to better understand your continuing medical education needs. This survey will help guide future statewide QI and educational efforts in pediatrics.  Take the 10-minute survey.