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November 2004 News

  No Offense Please!

You go to Grand Rounds, grab your coffee, go to the sign-in sheet and your names not pre-printed on the list, please don't take offense. There are now 1300 physicians within the ACMEC service area. In order to track CME we have created pre-printed sign-in sheets reflecting those most commonly attending a specific Grand Rounds. The alternative would be a list of 1300 names or completely blank sheet's, either would take significantly longer to sign in. So if you see the sheet and your names not there, please just sign in on the back and we'll get your credit recorded.

Secondly - When we ask you to call us rather than your staff to get your CME credit reports, please, no offense. We are trying to maintain the confidentiality of your individual CME record. We don't release your record to anyone that may request it but you or the credentialing hospital, if you've given permission.

  Men's Health

This years Idaho Academy of Family Physicians Jackpot meeting will focus on "Men's Health". The meeting will be held November 13, 2004. Call Neva Santos at 323-1156 for registration information.

  CHEERS

Pediatric educational offering is held 8:00 a.m., the 1st, 2nd, and 4th Thursday of the month in Ada 2 of the Anderson Center. The November 4th program will include Tom Rand, M.D., PhD presenting an "Immunization Update". Please call Sherry Iverson at 381-2666 for a current calendar.

  A Diet Talk for the Holidays

A little extra attention to support your attendance at our talk November 24th on "Evidence Based Research on Diets", Kristin Ritzenthaler, PhD, nutritionist, presented at this years IMA meeting. Her talk was so well received we decided to repeat the talk at a slot before the holiday binge season. Do yourself a favor and learn what we know about diets before we gain the requesite 5 lbs. over the holidays.

Congratulations:
Congratulations to Dr. Ted Epperly on his election to the Board of Directors of the American Academy of Family Physicians.

  Reminder:

VA Medical Center Winter Retreat - January 13-16-2005
Ada County Medical Society Winter Clinics - February 19-21, 2005
Family Practice Residency 30 Year Reunion - May 13-15, 2005
Idaho Medical Association Meeting - July 21-23, 2005
Idaho Academy of Family Physicians Meeting - May 13-14,2005

 

  Anderson Center - Wednesday, 8:00 a.m.

 3 Fred Sheftell, MD, Director and Founder, New England Center for Headache, Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychiatry, New York Medical College.

  Mercy Medical Center - Wednesday, 12:30 p.m. - Winter Room

 3 Fred Sheftell, MD, Director and Founder, New England Center for Headache, Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychiatry, New York Medical College.

  McCleary Center - Friday, 8:00 a.m.

 5 Elson So, MD, Director, Section of Electroencephalography, Professor of Neurology, Mayo Medical School.
19 Jody McVittie, MD, Self employed parent educator, facilitator, and trainer.


  Tumor Boards

Mercy Medical Center - Tuesday, 12:00 noon
St. Alphonsus Regional Medical Center - Friday, 7:00 a.m.
Breast Care Panel - Saint Alphonsus RMC - Tuesday, 7:00 a.m.
St. Luke's Regional Medical Center - Tuesday, 12:00 noon
Breast Tumor Board - St. Luke's RMC - Thursday, 7:00 a.m.
MSTI Pediatric Tumor Board - 2nd & 4th Wednesday, 12:00 noon


 

  New Members:

The following physicians were elected as ACMS Provisional Members: Vic Kadyan, M.D.; Margaret Nunley, M.D.; Sarah Logan, M.D.; Michael Pelton, M.D.; Brandy Welch, M.D.; A. Curt Jones, M.D.

The ACMS Annual Meeting was held October 12th. The 2004-05 board members are as follows: Dr. Barbara Quattrone, President; Dr. Mickey Myhre, President-elect; Dr. John Werdel, Secretary; Dr. Mike Mercy, Treasurer; Dr. Kyle Palmer, Dr. Steve Schutz, Dr. Ralph Sutherlin, Members-at-Large & Jeremy Ostrander, Residency Representative.

  Upcoming Events:

Winter Clinics, February 18-21, 2005 at the Sun Valley Inn. Registration and Trade Show information will be mailed out in November. If you have questions call the ACMS office at 336-2930


 

You Know You Are A True Idahoan When:


 

Upcoming Calendar

December 2004

 1 Best of AHA, J. Brent Muhlestein, MD
 8 Best of Thoracic Society, Richard Barbers, MD
15 Adverse Transfusion Reactions, Annie Strupp, MD
17 Foot and Ankle Problems, Michael Coughlin, MD
22 No Conference
24 No Conference
29 No Conference
31 No Conference

January 2005

 5 Cutaneous Manifestations of Systemic Disease, Steven Mings, MD
12 Fungal Infections, Richard Mazziares, MD
26 COPD, Joe Crowley, MD


 

Traveler's Diarrhea

The most common cause of travelers' diarrhea, which is usually self-limiting, is infection with noninvasive enterotoxigenic strains of e-coli. Other causes include Shigella, Salmonella, Campylobacter, Aeromonas, viruses, and parasites. Fluroquinolones are the current antimicrobial standard of care for many forms of bacterial diarrhea but are losing their value in some areas where resistance to Campylobacter jejuni is a growing problem. Rifaximin (Xifaxan-Salix) is a non-absorbed oral antibiotic recently approved by the FDA for the treatment of travelers' diarrhea in patients over 12 years of age. It reaches high concentration in the gut and is active against a broad range of enteropathogens including the toxic E.coli., Shigella, Salmonella but it is much less active against Campylobacter and Yersinia. There have been no severe side effects in the clinical trials nor has it caused clinically relevant interactions with other drugs. We have all made suggestions regarding diet during acute diarrheal illness but have had little data. A recent study on 105 U.S. college students in Mexico randomized them to either eat whatever they wanted while acutely ill or to limit their diets to clear liquids, crackers, bread, or tortillas. Fatty fried foods, fruit, coffee, alcohol, and dairy products were banned. There was no significant difference in the intensity of symptoms or the duration of illness with the limited diet. There are now more options available to treat this all too common problem among travelers and it probably makes sense to let them eat whatever they wish. (Clin Infec Dis 2004 Aug 15; 39:472-3 The Medical Letter 2004 Sept 13; 46:74-75)

Influenza 2004-2005

This year's flu vaccine, if you're lucky enough to get it, includes a new A strain similar to the Fujian strain which caused so much of the disease last year and also a new B strain. The U.S. Public Health Service has broadened the indications to include all children from 6-23 months of age. High risk individuals of any age should receive it as should all healthcare workers and persons over 50 years of age if enough vaccine is available. Because of the shortage of vaccine I'm sure we will see more prescribing of the drugs used both to prevent and treat the disease. A Japanese team has recently studied influenza A viruses isolated from 50 children aged 2 months to 14 years before and during treatment with Oseltamivir/Tamiflu which is indicated both for influenza A and B. They isolated Oseltamivir resistant viruses in 18% of these children. An accompanying editorialist makes the point that these drugs may be important in the highly lethal avian influenza strain that currently is threatening Asia, since no vaccine is available against this virus. One wonders if the more wide spread use this year of these drugs will result in yet more viral resistance. (Lancet 2004 Aug 28; 364:759-65 Lancet 2004 Aug 28; 364:733-4 The Medical Letter 2004 Oct 11;46:83-4)

John J. Mohr, M.D.


 

November Conferences

  St. Luke's Regional Medical Center - Wednesday 8am, Anderson Center

 3 Management of the Rebound Headache, Fred Sheftell, MD
10 Intensity Modulated Radiation, Stephen Smith, MD
17 Antibiotic Resistance, Sky R. Blue, MD
24 Evidence Based Choices for Weight Loss, Kristin Ritzenthaler, PhD

  Mercy Medical Center - Wednesday 12:30pm

 3 Management of the Rebound Headache, Fred Sheftell, MD
10 Intensity Modulated Radiation, Stephen Smith, MD
17 Antibiotic Resistance, Sky R. Blue, MD
24 Evidence Based Choices for Weight Loss, Kristin Ritzenthaler, PhD

  VA Medical Center - Thursday 8am, AW Horsley Learning Ctr.

 4 Peripheral Arterial Disease as a Risk Factor for CAD, Teresa Carmen, MD
11 TBA
18 Patient Satisfaction, L. Tad Cowley, MD
25 No Conference

  St. Alphonsus Regional Medical Center - Friday 8am, Centennial Room

 5 Post Traumatic Epilepsy: Risk Mgt. & Seizure Treatment, Elson So, MD
12 Stroke Protocol, James French, MD
19 Teaching Parenting Skills in PC: Kids Don't Come w/ Instructions, Jody McVittie, MD
26 No Conference

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