President’s Post-Meeting Report

Arizona Urological Society
2016 Meeting April 8-10
Scottsdale McCormick Ranch Resort
Click here for photo gallery

 

Dear Members and Colleagues,

Many thanks to all the members, guests and speakers who were able to attend the annual meeting this past weekend in Scottsdale.  Overall, the meeting feedback has been very positive and the participation was excellent.

Dr. Matt Gretzer, outgoing president, and program chair Dr. Erik Castle organized a fantastic slate of speakers for the scientific/academic program:

• Dr. Tom Lue from UCSF gave State-of-the Art lectures on Priapism and Peyronie’s Disease;

• Dr. Mitch Humphreys from Mayo Clinic discussed the challenges of setting up an MRI fusion biopsy program and the initial results at his institution;

• Residents from the University of Arizona (Alex Jule, Chris Brown) and Mayo Clinic (Austin Critchlow, Catherine Chen) presented Point/Counterpoint positions on stone disease and urethral trauma.

In the health policy segment, we were honored to have Arizona State Representative Heather Carter (District 15) and Chic Older, ArMA Excecutive Vice President with us to discuss the increasingly robust state level activity, the various legislative issues that affect Arizona urologists and the importance of our role as patient advocates. Issues discussed included the Medical Compact Bill (HB 2502), reimbursement for telemedicine (SB1363), physician shortage/scope of practice, and how we can be effective in the legislative process. The take home message from this segment: Get involved because there are lots of new seats coming up for election this year and the outcome will likely have a huge impact on your practice.

Special note: Our sincere gratitude goes to Rep. Heather Carter who is clearly a friend of organized medicine and has been the key “go-to” person in the legislature looking out for our interests and that of our patients on many fronts.

The business meeting was well attended and included both regional reports and institutional updates. The report from the secretary-treasurer indicates we are in good financial health and have exceeded our membership goal of 75% of Arizona urologists. Thanks to all members for helping us achieve that goal!

The meeting could not occur without the continued support of industry, and it was great to see many familiar faces at the booths.  Many of the companies have sponsored the meeting year after year.  A huge thanks to those attendees who had significant interactions with industry representatives.

As usual, the DeSantis Management Group arranged a great meeting–from the venue, to other industry-sponsored talks, great meals/social events, prize drawings—it really was an incredible event. They truly are the lifeblood of the organization.

Working together with Dr. Tony Woodruff (President-Elect), Dr. Mitzi Barmatz (Sec/Treas) and Dr. Erik Castle (Program Chair), we will continue to strive to improve the organization.  The DeSantis Management Group is already working on possible venues for next year, and I personally encourage you to contact me directly if you have any thoughts or suggestions.  My goal is to increase interaction with our members and utilize all the great talent and expertise found within our state!

Finally, I wish to invite all Arizona attendees coming to the Western Section Meeting in Kauai to a social reception and get together for ALL providers from Arizona, even non-members.  This will be a great opportunity to connect with colleagues and introduce them to our Society!  There will also be a short planning session for the officers and any interested members as we continue to plan next year’s annual meeting. A notice will be sent soon with the time and date.

Also check out our website for the meeting photo gallery and other news at www.azurological.org.

Any feedback, thoughts or ideas?  I look forward to hearing from you!

Sincerely,
Jason Jameson, MD
President, Arizona Urological Society