President's Letter
Hello everyone -
This year has gotten off to a great start! The Timberline meeting was once again a fabulous and fun-filled educational experience! Thanks to everyone who participated!
Those of you who couldn't join us this year should know you were missed. One of my main goals as President this year is to increase the opportunities for each of us to find meaningful ways to engage together in our NAOEM community. In this letter, I will describe at least four ways for you to become involved. As you will see, these could be entwined in a classic “good news – bad news” joke. Instead, I see them as opportunities that come with change, opportunities for us as individuals, and opportunities for our organization.
First! – Hear ye! Hear ye! – the NAOEM 2011 Scientific and Clinical Education Conference will be held somewhere other that Timberline!
One of the ways to become involved is to serve on the Board of Directors. I am pleased to announce that we have added four new Directors this year. Drs. Gregory Martin, Daniel Sudakin, and Gary Rischitelli were each elected to a three-year term as Directors-at-Large, and Dr. Tim Gilmore was elected to a one-year term as Secretary-Treasurer. Thank you all, very much! The rest of you… stay tuned for your chance to serve… three new Directors are elected each year, and the time keeps slippin’ slippin’ slippin’…
Member participation in organized events is one important measure of our success. It has not escaped your Board’s attention that regular attendees at the annual Timberline meeting represent a selected segment of our overall membership. We are thankful for them who embody the long history of public service, for which Timberline Lodge, itself, stands as a testament. Through their dedication, NAOEM has become what it is today. I am personally grateful to each of you, and the mountain becomes a metaphor…
In the Lodge, built on a solid foundation of service, with a stunning view of Mt. Hood as a backdrop, the Board meeting at Timberline was quite lively. Perhaps the most difficult decision we made was to find a different location for the 2011 Scientific & Clinical Education Conference. The argument that held sway was that, despite its natural beauty and historic significance, the Timberline location deters many members from attending the Conference. So, in the interest of broader attendance and greater inclusivity, we have decided to hold the Education Conference at a different location in 2011.
Here’s your second opportunity to become involved – Join our new Vice President, Dr. Marc Suffis, who by tradition becomes the Chair of the Conference Planning Committee for 2011. He welcomes you to contribute your talents and energies to planning the 2011 Conference. We are targeting the weekend of September 23-25, 2011. Some lovely locations are under consideration, but the course content and location await your creative input! Please contact Marc, me, or Darla. We need to move quickly, before the best spots are taken!
Moving our annual Education Conference to the fall raises a potential conflict with the Northwest Occupational Health Conference (NOHC), which this year will be held in Portland, on October 13-15, 2010. Although NAOEM has historically partnered with the IH and OHN communities in producing NOHC, our members’ participation has waned over the past few years. Whether we continue to have a formal connection with NOHC beyond 2010 will ultimately depend on your interest and participation. Here comes your third opportunity… If you are willing to help organize the Occupational Medicine session at NOHC, or perhaps give a presentation this year, we need to hear from you! We need to know if there is sufficient interest to justify an ongoing commitment. Please note that similar to this past year, due to budgetary constraints, we do not expect to offer Category 1 CME credit for the NOHC.
As we all know, NAOEM has a strong and heartfelt connection with Timberline. Therefore, the Board also decided to maintain its annual Timberline tradition by holding a NAOEM “Timberline Winter Retreat". The Retreat will be open to the entire membership, but we will consider attendance a high priority for Board members. In addition to enjoying Timberline’s winter amenities, we will dedicate time to addressing administrative and political issues facing the organization and our membership. It may even be possible to provide relevant CME at the Retreat. Content could focus, for example, on best practices of organizational management, or leadership training. This would distinguish the Timberline Retreat from the Education Conference, and yet would provide a valuable CME experience in itself.
Here is your fourth (not last) opportunity to become involved – join with me and our Past Presidents, who are clearly passionate about the future of our organization and our field, as we form a Timberline Retreat Guidance Council. This Council will take ownership of the annual Retreat, this year targeted for February 18-20, 2011. Each of us has a personal connection with Timberline! Help us ensure this treasure will continue to be shared with others. Who knows… perhaps this would be a good venue to engage with leaders of neighboring components…
Isn’t life so wonderful?! We have many opportunities to stretch and grow as individuals! I have described at least four ways for you to engage with NAOEM as we stretch and grow as an organization.
- Join the Board of Directors, it’s not too early to think about a nomination for 2011…
- Join the Scientific & Clinical Education Conference Planning Committee, the first priority is to choose a location, then identify the content and consider sponsorship.
- Join the Northwest Occupational Health Conference group for Portland, 2010… and beyond…?
- Join the Timberline Winter Retreat Guidance Council, the location is clear, and your leadership is invited!
Please contact one of us listed below by March 31. Your energies are welcome!
Thanks for the opportunity to serve! And for your support and participation!
Jordan
Jordan Firestone, President
206-744-9375
jfire@uw.edu
Marc Suffis, Vice-President
drmsuff@comcast.net
Darla White, Executive Administrator
ddw@wsma.org
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