Respectfully submitted by Carla Murphy, DO, FACEP
National ACEP’s annual Council Meeting convened in Philadelphia on October 7th – 8th, segueing into the educational annual Scientific Assembly, ACEP23.
Colorado councilors/alternates who participated were Drs. Jamie Dhaliwal, Ramnik Dhaliwal, Laura Edgerley-Gibb, Anna Engeln, Rachelle Klammer, Rebecca Kornas, Allison Trop, Doug Hill, and Carla Murphy. Our contingent was again honored to have Dr. Brooks Bock (past ACEP President, 1983-84) join the Colorado contingent by ACEP custom, as he now resides in Vail.
The Council, which is our grassroots representative body, considered 62 resolutions and adopted 46. Nine were not adopted, one was withdrawn, and seven were referred to the Board of Directors. A detailed summary of the resolutions can be found here.
Adopted resolutions of particular interest include:
- 21 Mitigation of Competition for Procedures Between EM Residents and Other Learners (PAs and NPs)
- 27 Addressing Interhospital Transfer Challenges for Rural Eds
- 29 Addressing Pediatric Mental Health Boarding in Emergency Departments
- 43 Adopt the Terminology “Unsupervised Practice of Medicine” to refer to the independent practice of medicine by non-physicians as “Unsupervised Practice of Medicine” and continue promotion of the gold standard ideals to have on-site supervision of non-physician practitioners.
- 47 ACEP no longer endorses the 2009 White Paper on Excited Delirium and has withdrawn approval of that document because it is no longer current with the College’s position, based on new science and understanding. (There is a new clinical policy covering Severe Agitation.)
- 49 Patients Leaving the ED Prior to Completion of Care Against Medical Advice
- 50 Metric Shaming resolution directs ACEP to develop practices and policies to prevent the external release of unblinded metric-related physician productivity information.
- 51 Patient Experience Scores – opposing their use in reimbursement and employment.
- 54 Opposition to The Joint Commission Credentialing Requirements for Individual Emergency Conditions
Three resolutions on firearms were adopted.
- 35 ACEP declares Firearm Violence a Public Health Crisis
- 36 Supporting Mandatory Waiting Periods for Firearm Purchases
- 37 ACEP supports Child-Protective Safety and Storage
Two firearm resolutions were not adopted.
- 33 & 34 Both related to weapons intended for military or law enforcement use.
Congratulations to our newly elected leadership:
- Speaker – Melissa W. Costello, MD, FACEP
- Vice Speaker – Michael J. McCrea, MD, FACEP
- President-Elect – Alison J. Haddock, MD, FACEP
- Board of Directors:
- Chadd K. Kraus, DO, DrPH, FACEP
- Abhi Mehrotra, MD, MBA, FACEP
- Henry Z. Pitzele, MD, FACEP
- James L. Shoemaker, Jr., MD, FACEP
Our national ACEP Board of Directors took action at two meetings:
10/6 Board meeting:
- Approved Exploring Retirement Section operational guidelines
- Approved revised Geriatric ED Accreditation Program governance charter
- Approved ED Accreditation Program Criteria
- Approved new clinical policy Critical Issues in the Management of Adult Prehospital or ED Patients Presenting with Severe Agitation
10/12 Board meeting:
- Board Officer Elections:
- Chair of the Board: Jeffrey M. Goodloe, MD, FACEP
- Vice President – Communications: Ryan A. Stanton, MD, FACEP
- Vice President – Membership: James L. Shoemaker, Jr., MD, FACEP
- Secretary-Treasurer: Kristin B. McCabe-Kline, MD, FACEP
Councilor Dr. Ricky Dhaliwal gave an excellent lecture: Little People, Big Lawsuits.
This year, there were 427 councilors allocated to represent ACEP’s total membership of almost thirty-eight thousand members. Total attendees at this annual meeting, ACEP23, were 8,302, including 1,952 exhibitors.
Best t-shirt at the meeting
ACEP featured its openbook.acep.org site, which reviews various employers and their contract ownership, group governance, adherence to ACEP policies, job opportunities, and facilities.
EMRA (Emergency Medicine Residents’ Association) debuted its handbook, Nerve Blocks and Procedural Pain Management Guide, with Colorado’s own Dr. Don Stader as co-editor-in-chief. Dr. Stader also served as the Pain Management and Addiction Medicine Section councilor and accepted the Council Teamwork award on behalf of the section.
Mark your calendars: The next Council meeting is scheduled for September 27-28, 2024, at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, NV. The associated Scientific Assembly is September 29 – October 2, 2024.
For curious minds: By ACEP24, decipher the meaning of this ACEP sticker:
Hint: BAD*** ******* ERDOCTOR