*The Committee on Adolescence addresses issues that affect teens and young adults and those who care for them. Recent efforts have focused on obesity, medical care and services for teens in DYS, access to pediatric medical and mental health consultations for the judges in the juvenile courts, psychopharmacology and mental health access for adolescents, "free care", new vaccination recommendations, increasing advocacy for teens within the Chapter, and participating in the Pediatric Council to represent the needs of adolescents and young adults. Liaison with other organizations that advocate for adolescents such as the Massachusetts state adolescent health coordinator and the New England Regional Chapter of the Society for Adolescent Medicine occurs regularly.
Rebecca Flynn O'Brien, MD
Division of General Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine
Phone 617-636-5241 - FAX 617-636-7719
* Report from 2007
Chair - Dr. Rebecca O’Brien
Anti-tobacco Advocacy Initiative - Tobacco-related accomplishments
We continue to represent the Chapter on the Tobacco Free Mass Coalition (tobaccofreemass.net), a group of advocates who are working toward eliminating tobacco use and, in the meantime, minimizing its harmful effects. Dr. Megan Sandel, representing the Chapter, is working with the Boston Public Health Commission on a Smoke Free Housing Policy campaign to increase smoke free building options
Although the "Restore the Trust" legislation to reinstate use of the Tobacco Settlement Fund and the Health Protection Fund for tobacco control was re-introduced this session, it did not move forward. In its proposed 2009 Budget, the House funded tobacco control at $13.75 million, a $1 million increase over the prior year (still significantly short of the CDC recommended level of $35 million.) Good news – the pilot project providing funding for Medicaid coverage of cessation services and products was made permanent in the budget.
The Chapter has become of a partner of a DPH program called "Quitworks". The goals of the program are the following:
• Create awareness of the issue of child exposure to second-hand smoke
• Encourage child and family practitioners to focus on family tobacco use
• Provide a “go-to” resource to help practitioners to help families to quit smoking
• Adaptation of the QuitWorks free fax-referral program as a solution for all child and family practice settings in Massachusetts.
Through this partnership, the Chapter will participate in a variety of promotional events with the DPH and other organizations.
If you have an interest in preventing tobacco addiction and exposure to secondhand smoke, please contact us at HYPERLINK "mailto:msandel@mcaap.org" msandel@mcaap.org or HYPERLINK "mailto:callen@mcaap.org" callen@mcaap.org. There are plenty of ways you can contribute to this effort and we welcome your help.
Co-Chairs - Dr. Carole Allen, Dr. Megan Sandel
The Committee on Breastfeeding works to promote breastfeeding via education, advocacy, and legislative efforts. Through the Massachusetts Breastfeeding Coalition (www.massbfc.org), the Committee provides statewide resource guides, lectures to hospital and office staff, community awards, and the organization of conferences for medical professionals. The Coalition has formed strong affiliations with the DPH and WIC to further goals and provide families with the benefits of human milk. We have worked to help produce the Annual Breastfeeding Conference in September 2008 organized by the Mass Breastfeeding coalition. We also hosted a session for the Breastfeeding Chapter Coordinators at the 2008 NCE in Boston. We have worked to promote breastfeeding friendly regulations and legislation through DPH and the legislature giving testimony and working with other groups such as Mass ACOG. In January 2009, the law to support breastfeeding in public was signed. Currently we are working to promote further legislation supporting workplace lactation support for working mothers. We are also working to promote the Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative in the Breastfeeding Collaborative to bring together Massachusetts birthing hospital staff and community resources to help hospitals progress together that are working to become Baby Friendly.
Coordinator - Dr. Susan Browne
The Committee on Bylaws submits revisions of chapter bylaws as the need arises. The Committee does not have regular meetings. The bylaws were revised with input from the Executive Board for approval at the 2007 Annual Meeting. They were approved at the 2008 Annual Meeting.
Chair – Open
CATCH Activities 2008-2009
The follow Massachusetts AAP CATCH grants were funded in 2007-2008
Project Titles:
· Health Outreach for Homeless Pregnant Women
· Adolescent Smoking Cessation: A Community-Based Intervention
· School-Based Healthy Weight Promotion
· STRENGTH: Nutrition and Exercise for Teen Health
· Worcester Mental Health Task Force
Dr. Sylvia was awarded a planning grant for the “South Berkshire Children's Wellness in Great Barrington, MA.
A CATCH Visiting Professorship is also funded for July at Children’s Hospital, and we funded MGH’s Advocacy Program for the upcoming year
Dr. Robert Kossack and Dr. Giuisy Romano-Clarke
Massachusetts Chapter AAP CATCH Facilitators
Children's Mental Health Task Force (CMHTF) is a coalition of pediatricians, child psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, insurance representatives, policy advocates, various commissioners, legislators, employer groups, nurses, and groups from the education and correctional services community in an effort to improve children's mental health in Massachusetts. The Task Force has been successful in obtaining reimbursement for non face-to-face care, increasing payments for child psychiatrists, helping in establishing a Special Governor's Commission on Children's Mental Health, facilitating funding for the Parent Advocacy League from HMO's, and facilitating the creation of various local children's mental health programs. The Child Psychiatry Access Project has been launched in six regional sites around the state and is enabling pediatricians to get training and consultations in psychopharmacology and managing patients with mental health problems.
Recent activities include:
● Getting health plans to reimburse for formal developmental/mental health/substance abuse screening using CPT code 96110 with annual preventative care visits. As far as I know, only Tufts, Aetna and Unicare require using a modifier-59 with this. We have recently been informed that the federal Blue Cross FEP program will begin reimbursement as well. A coding fact sheet from AAP may be found at http://www.aap.org/moc/reimburse/DevelopmentalScreeningTestingCodingFactSheet.doc.
· Testimony has been given and there have been many meetings to look at multiple aspects of the children’s mental health system in Massachusetts
· There is a private/public workgroup that is dealing with substance abuse in kids.
· Meetings have been scheduled to discuss children’s mental health in schools and develop resource guides.
· The Massachusetts Child Psychiatry Access Program (MCPAP) is expanding across the state to make child psychiatrists available for timely pediatric consultation and make pediatricians aware of the mental health resources in their communities. MCPAP may be reached at 617-790-5670.
· Health Law Advocates, which is part of Health Care for All, is setting up a network of attorneys who will advocate for children’s rights with mental health problems. An omnibus mental health bill has been recently filed with input from the Children’s Mental Health Task Force.
· There has been a lawsuit against the state, where the judge ruled that the state is not doing enough to offer mental health community resources for MassHealth children. The state has established the Children’s Behavioral Health Initiative (CBHI) to implement the court order and the plan includes universal pediatric behavioral screening at well visits, a standardized assessment for children referred to mental health providers (the CANS), and an array of emergency and community-based mental services for children.
· The Task Force continues to advise the CBHI on implementation by serving as the MCAAP’s representative on the advisory board and providing ongoing advice on pediatric screening including modifications to the birth-6 month measures. The task force also serves as the Academy’s representative on the new advisory board established legislatively by the Children’s Mental Health Bill which became law this past summer. The Task Force continues to monitor and advocate for full implementation of this legislation particularly in light of budget cuts and their impact on early intervention services and child mental health services.
· In keeping with the MCAAP’s decision to focus on early childhood this year, the Task Force has been particularly concerned with the high rate of expulsion of preschoolers from child care in Massachusetts. We have focused on the prevention of mental health problems in early childhood and heard presentations by a variety of model programs throughout the state and by the newly appointed Commissioner of Early care and Education. Going forward we will be particularly focused on pediatric efforts at prevention in early childhood.
· The Task Force has also discussed two other problems: 1) the appropriate use of and adequate reimbursement for high quality neuropsychological assessments and 2) the involvement of the probate court with families and children regarding the guardianship of minor cases.
If people have questions about any of this or wish to join the CMHTF, they can email me at myogman@massmed.org. We also invite pediatricians to join our two subcommittees: 1) pediatric screening and 2) neuropsych assessments.
Chair – Dr. Michael Yogman
The Committee on Continuing Medical Education (CME) is committed to providing the highest quality educational programs for MCAAP members. MCAAP maintains certification to provide Category 1 credits through the Massachusetts Medical Society. The 2008 Annual Meeting, entitled "Pediatricians Bridging the Gap between Office and Schools" ushered in a new era of collaborative CME for our chapter by bringing school administrators, school nurses, emergency medical experts, school psychologists and pediatricians together to learn about timely topics in school health and discuss practical applications in both lecture and small group settings. Our 2008 Edward Penn Lecturer, Dr. Nancy Rappaport presented “Working with Schools to Care for Depressed or Aggressive Students”. Our attendees were also able to attend workshops on cyberbullying, school emergency preparedness, 504’s and IEPs, Rosie D, management of the out-of-control Child, and the use of AEDs in schools.
In the upcoming year, our committee will be evaluating the use of e-learning, community learning groups to aid our members in discussion and clinical follow-up of live and virtual CME programs, clarification and help with Maintenance of Certification requirements, and other services to supplement live CME. We are in great need of new committee members to keep our programming fresh. All medical students, residents, young and senior physicians, and practicing and academic pediatricians are invited to contact us to join our next meeting. Our committee also relies greatly on member physicians to complete evaluations and needs assessments to develop programs that meet our members’ needs. We continue to incorporate the expertise of MCAAP committees in educating the general membership on clinical issues, pediatric practice administration, and child advocacy.
Chair – Dr. Mary Beth Miotto
MCAAP Committee on Disabilities (COD) is committed to increasing awareness and capacity among pediatricians to better care for children and youth with special health care needs (CYSHCN) within the medical home. Areas of focus for the COD over the past several years have included medical education, developmental screening, and transition of CYSHCN to adulthood.
The COD has collaborated with the Consortium for Children with Special Needs (Consortium) on a number of projects, including the CSHCN Medical Education Project, which involved interviews of faculty and residents at each of the pediatric training programs in Massachusetts to identify what and how residents are taught about CYSCHN and medical home. A summary report “Preparing for Practice” can be found online at http://www.neserve.org/neserve/pub_pfp.htm.
The COD’s current area of interest is collaboration with schools, with a focus on increasing physician awareness and understanding of topics such as IEPs and educational rights, autism services in the schools, alternative school placements, and working effectively with school nurses.
The MCAAP COD generally meets every two months, and includes primary care pediatricians, developmental specialists, and others. We hope to continue to expand our membership, and always welcome new members and new ideas. We would also like to
increase participation of medical students, residents, and fellows. Please email me nazariab@ummhc.org for more information on the COD.
Chair – Dr. Beverly Nazarian
The MCAAP Committee on Environmental Health mourns the loss of one of our colleagues, Dr Michael Shannon, who served as a co-chair of our MCAAP committee on environmental health and also served and chaired the national AAP Committee on Environmental Health for many years. He will be sorely missed as a national leader on Children's Environmental Health.
The Committee looks forward to the next year to have regular meetings again to discuss a wide range of topics, including many updates from the national AAP Committee on Environmental Health, which Dr. Megan Sandel now serves. Topics of interest include plasticizers, built environment and healthy food in hospital settings among others. Also in 2010, the new revised Green Book will be coming and will be an exciting update.
As always, we welcome feedback from committee members, and are open to suggestions for changes and/or additional topics. We are also looking for volunteers who would like to help with writing the short pieces for MCAAP's quarterly newsletter. Please feel free to extend an invite to MCAAP members who are interested in environmental health issues. We always welcome new energy, new ideas!
Co-Chairs - Dr. Megan Sandel, Boston Medical Center and Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Unit at Children's Hospital, Boston and Dr Siobhan McNally, who remained as co-chair until recently!
*The Committee on Fetus & Newborn is committed to early discharge
issues, specifically the need for hyperbilirubemia monitoring prior to discharge and appropriate follow-up. The committee will also be involved in work related to prevention of preterm birth. The committee will was closely involved in the rewriting of the MA DPH Perinatal Regulations which were approved this year and will continue to be involved in their implementation over the coming year.
Chair – Elizabeth Brown
Update from 2006
The Forum
During the past year, the Forum has continued to publish practical and timely information for our membership on a variety of topics. Chapter activities, health care policy and legislation, advocacy for children, access to services, volunteer experiences, international experiences, information about mental health screening tools and public health are just some of the broad and diverse topics about which recent articles have been published. In addition to the print version of the newsletter, which is mailed to all members, an online edition is available at no-charge to the public.
Submissions for the quarterly newsletter continue to fill an 8-12 page publication each issue. We continue to encourage medical students and residents to contribute articles and have been successful at obtaining high quality content written by those in training across the state. Reoccurring columns on topics such as oral health, reach out and read, and adolescent care continue to be popular among the readership.
The newsletter could not be produced without the excellent coordination of services from the New England Journal of Medicine. Advertisers continue to find the Forum a useful means of disseminating their message to pediatricians across Massachusetts, and as a result have produced a small amount of revenue for the Chapter.
Dr. Lloyd Fisher, Editor of the Forum
The Committee on Foster Care, comprised of pediatricians and representatives from the Massachusetts Department of Children and Families, continues its commitment to improve the health care of children in foster care.
Last fall, our chapter was awarded a grant from the Task Force on Foster Care, an ad hoc committee of the national AAP that has met biannually since 2007. The TFOFC awarded grants to five state chapters to facilitate the development of systems of care within the state. With the support of this grant, we have visited several medical clinic sites throughout Massachusetts to discuss ways to increase access, communication, and appropriate care for children in DCF custody. In addition we have met with the State Child Advocate, state legislators, and area, regional, and state DCF personnel.
In Worcester the FaCES Clinic (Foster Children Evaluation Services) continues to provide screening, procurement of past medical records, comprehensive evaluation, updating of immunizations, laboratory tests as needed, and necessary referrals for all children from birth to 18 years of age. At completion of these visits, all medical information is sent to child's Medical Home while in foster care. This model is now being considered at sites in Boston and Springfield.
All interested pediatricians are welcome to join our committee.
Chair – Dr. Linda Sagor
The Immunization Initiative continues to advocate for universal distribution of all recommended childhood immunizations and to educate health care providers, legislators, public health advocates and the general public about the importance, effectiveness and safety of vaccines. Funding of immunizations continues to be a major problem.
This year as in 2008, the state's immunization program was not able to provide 3 vaccines (Catch up immunization with MCV4, Tdap, Varicella vaccines, and immunization of non VFC eligible patients with HPV vaccine) free for all children, which has increased the burden both on pediatricians and their patients. Starting July 2009, the state will not be able to provide Rotavirus vaccine to children non eligible to VFC vaccines. As a result of reductions in funding from the federal Government and the MDPH, the Immunization Initiative budget was cut significantly and all work on the State's Immunization Registry (the
MIIS) was suspended indefinitely.
Unless there is a change in the funding for the universal immunization for children in the general laws of Massachusetts, we will need to continue to advocate each year with state legislators for the appropriation of adequate funds to buy and distribute vaccines for all children in the state, a task that becomes more difficult as more and more costly vaccines are developed and recommended.
The Massachusetts Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics (MCAAP), working with the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (MDPH), the Medical Legal Partnership for Children at Boston Medical Center, and the law firm of Ropes and Gray, has drawn up proposed legislation that offers a permanent solution for these problems. The legislation will establish a Vaccine Purchase Trust Fund to cover the costs of purchasing and distributing vaccines for childhood immunizations and to cover the costs of a Massachusetts Immunization Registry. It will require that every health insurer shall provide benefits for routine childhood immunizations for Massachusetts residents (until age 19) and recommended immunizations for Massachusetts residents who are 19 and older. The Immunization Initiative and the MCAAP chapter leadership are working on creating a coalition of support to this legislation.
We continue to meet at least quarterly to discuss current immunization issues to advise the Massachusetts Department of Public Health on issues of purchasing and distributing vaccines for children. The Initiative sponsored 13 Grand Rounds this year throughout Massachusetts and co-sponsored (with MDPH) the 13th Annual Massachusetts Immunization Conference. The program maintains a web page within the MCAAP web site.
In collaboration with the Pediatric Council, the Immunization Initiative works on clarifying issues related to CPT coding and reimbursement for vaccines and their administration. We publish results of our periodical surveys of the HMOs on their reimbursement policies.
Program Director - Sean Palfrey, MD, FAAP & Program Manager - Hadassa Kubat, DrSc, MPH
The Committee on International Child Health was formed in 2004 and welcomes pediatricians with an interest in issues related to global child health. The Committee has developed a relationship with a hospital in Zumbahua, Ecuador, a remote town in the high Andes. This site provides an opportunity for residents and pediatricians from both academic and practice settings to work in clinical care, teaching and collaborative research. We are working with local health care providers on a program to both research and treat existing malnutrition as well as provide general medical care in this high, indigenous region.
The Committee also reviews applications for six $500 International Health travel grants awarded yearly. We also allocate money in small grants for international health projects being done by committee members. Money in the past has been used to purchase scales for Zumbahua and buretrols and related supplies for a project in Ghana. Finally, all of the pediatric residency programs in Massachusetts are developing interest groups and curricula in international child health.
The Committee is providing a forum for these groups to share what they are learning, and foster the growing interest in global health issues among physicians i n training. We also meet on occasion with the MMS Global Medicine Committee to share speakers as well as ideas.
Anyone interested in being added to the International Committee listserv should contact Cathleen Haggerty at 781-895-9852 or via e-mail at chaggerty@mcaap.org. We meet roughly five times a year at 6:30 pm in Waltham, on varying evenings.
Co-Chairs – Dr. Jane Cross and Dr. David Norton
The Injury Prevention Committee was directly involved in 2008 in securing the passage of the Booster Seat Law. This law, passed in Summer 2008, requires use of appropriate car/booster seats by children up to 8 years of age or 57 inches whichever comes first.
Since that time, the committee has had a leadership role in working for an improved "primary" seatbelt law. Senate Bill S950, which would save a projected 27 lives, 1,000 serious injuries and $ 1/4 billion annually, is now before the Public Safety Committee. Members are encouraged to contact their legislature in support of this measure, and can become involved by contacting the Injury Committee
The Committee also has supported legislation regulating the age of usage of ATVs and is working with the Department of Public Health on Concussion prevention. training for coaches and trainers. We are now represented on the executive of the Prevent Injuries Now Network, through the DPH. We are also attempting to create an email network of professionals interested in Injury Prevention
Chair - Greg Parkinson, MD - gparkinson@massmed.org
The Committee on Legislation tracks legislation relevant to children's health care and related issues, provides testimony on bills, and updates the Executive Board on the state budget process and the specific ways in which it may impact children's health care. The Committee works in collaboration with other AAP subcommittees and groups who are invested in children's health care. The goals of the Committee are to consider issues of importance to the children of Massachusetts that have been affected by local, state, and national legislative action; to research and discuss such issues as they are brought to the attention of the Committee by its members, Chapter members, and others; and to recommend appropriate actions to the Executive Committee after such study and discussion.
Some highlights of the last legislative session:
Some highlights of the current legislative session:
· The Chapter, under the guidance of Sean Palfrey, MD, brought forth legislation supporting funding to cover the costs of purchasing and distributing vaccines for childhood immunizations and to cover the costs of a Massachusetts immunization registry. The bill is entitled An Act Establishing the Massachusetts Childhood Vaccines Program and the Massachusetts Immunization Registry. The Chapter's bill will be filed by Senator Moore. Senator Fargo will be filing a similar bill submitted by the Department of Public Health.
· The Chapter continues to advocate for passage of a School Nutrition Bill.
· The Chapter continues to oppose bills allowing for independent licensure and practice for midwives
· The Fourth Annual "Residents' Day at the State House" will take place on
Monday, June 1st. All pediatric residents, fellows, and attendings are
invited. Participants will be supporting the immunization bill, a bill that promotes better payment for coordination child mental health services, and a bill preventing all-terrain vehicle injury.
Co-Chairs Drs. Karen McAlmon and Michael McManus
The Committee on Membership
· Membership numbers are at 1,800 for this past year. This number includes all dues-paying, board certified, board-eligible pediatricians, and pediatric residents whose membership dues are covered by their respective training programs and medical students whose dues are covered by AAP/MCAAP.
· Increased efforts in working with the “liaison” residents in the pediatric training programs has resulted in a more thorough knowledge of the benefits of MCAAP membership to the pediatric resident group. These same folks have gone on to construct communication systems within their individual residency groups. The message has begun to be heard by these young pediatricians in training that MCAAP is a committed and powerful group which is indefatigably fighting for the issues involving child health and welfare. Recent developments involving universal childhood immunization, its ramifications for children, and their pediatricians have highlighted the MCAAP as a powerful voice for pediatricians as well.
· The Committee has requested and obtained from the Executive Committee of MCAAP financial support for the fourth resident organized and directed Resident Legislative Day which will occur on June 1st. The 2008 Residents day was enormously successful with representation from all the residency programs. Many of the resident participants came away from their meetings with senate and house leaders with a strengthened knowledge that one person can make a difference if communication exists between different arenas interested in similar issues. Many of these residents are now actively involved in Chapter activities
· As part of advocacy training, Children’s Hospital Boston has sent residents to Executive Committee, Pediatric Council, Children’s Mental Health Task Force and Obesity Committee Meetings. This has increased awareness of opportunities to be involved in the Chapter throughout the residency community.
· There was a residents meeting in February to discuss ways in which residents can become more involved in the Chapter. The Chapter received an AAP outreach grant in the amount of $3,000 to host programs specifically geared towards residents.
We will continue our effort and ask all of you in your various contacts with interested students to preach the word of membership and benefits. If you would like to get a list if student benefits, please contact Cathleen Haggerty at 781-895-9852. – Report submitter by immediate past Chair - Dr. Patricia Moffatt. New chair is Dr. Chelsea Gordner
The Nominating Committee consists of six (6) members who shall be appointed by the Executive Board every two years to coincide with the term of the President. The Nominating Committee prepared a slate of candidates for offices to be filled starting in July 2007. A candidate's name may be submitted to the Nominating Committee for consideration by any member or placed on the ballot by a petition of fifteen (15) voting members. All nominations must be received by the Nominating Committee one month after the call for nominations is mailed
Chair – Open
The Obesity Committee was established in 2003 in response to the alarming increase in prevalence of overweight among children in the United States. The Committee has worked on developing strategies to identify, prevent, and control the problem, and meeting approximately every 3 months.
In order to gain a broader perspective of the problem and a better understanding of current programs that address childhood obesity, members from various state organizations were invited to join the Committee. Participants include both community and academic pediatricians, nutritionists, psychologists, and representatives from the Department of Education, the Department of Public Health (including WIC), the Massachusetts Public Health Association, and some health insurers. The Committee thus serves as a sounding board, providing a setting for the exchange of viewpoints between the pediatric community and public and private-sector institutions which play a central role in promoting the health of the children of the Commonwealth. Issues the Committee has considered over the past year include statewide BMI screening in schools; the new WIC food package; MCAAP CME planning; community-based obesity prevention programs; and how to help educate Massachusetts pediatricians in best-practice guidelines.
We work with the MCAAP Legislative Committee to support select bills that deal with the obesity epidemic. We have provided the Chapter with draft testimony and worked with the Legislative Committee to finalize the Chapter’s testimony before Proposed Amendments to Regulations of the Department of Public Health 105CMR200.000, Physical Examination of School Children. The regulations were enacted and we have been working closely with DPH toward the implementation of the screenings. We have also submitted resolutions to the AAP Annual Leadership Forum regarding healthful beverage policy, and provided relevant articles to the MCAAP’s chapter newsletter. At our February meeting, the Committee hosted John Auerbach, Massachusetts Commissioner of Public Health, and Lauren Smith, DPH’s Medical Director, to discuss the BMI screening program and Mass in Motion campaign. The discussion was lively and engaged. After the meeting, the Commissioner indicated that he is excited to be working with the chapter on this initiative.
Co-Chairs – Dr. Elizabeth Goodman and Dr. Alan Meyers
The Pediatric Council continues to meet with the major insurers, Masshealth, DPH, & the Immunization Initiative and serves both as an advocacy group for children and as an educational conduit to our member constituencies. The Council has confronted Immunization concerns and changes, CPT coding issues, realities related to Retail Based Clinics, streamlining of prior approval processes, issues related to the Medical Home, QA &QI, AND P4P. The Council has become the proverbial "canary in the coal mine" as an early warning mechanism for changes in the world of healthcare. I am extremely appreciative of the efforts put forward by this group of individuals, on an ongoing basis.
Chair, Dr. Peter Rappo
PROS —Pediatric Research in Office Settings
PROS offers the practicing pediatrician the opportunity to participate in meaningful hands-on clinical research. We have a large number of practices in Massachusetts who are actively participating in PROS studies, and there are a number of ongoing and evolving projects covering a variety of topics.
RECENT PUBLICATIONS:
Barkin S, Finch S, Ip E, Scheindlin B, Craig J, Steffes J, Weiley V, Slora E, Altman D, Wasserman R. Is Office-Based Counseling About Media Use, Time-outs, and Firearm Storage Effective? Results From a Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial. Pediatrics. 2008; 122(1): e15-e25.
Darden P, Taylor J, Brooks D, Hendricks JW, Massoudi M, Stevenson J, Bocian A. How Should Immunization Rates be Measured in the Office Setting? A Study from PROS and NMA PedsNet. Clinical Pediatrics. 2008; 47: 252 - 260.
Finch S, Lalama C, Spino C, Schwartz HC, Wasserman RC, McCormick MC, Bernstein HH. Practice-based research network solutions to methodological challenges encountered in a national, prospective cohort study of mothers and newborns. Paediatric and Perinatal Epidemiology 2008; 22 (1): 87-98.
Finch S, Weiley V, Ip E, Barkin S. Impact of Pediatricians' Perceived Self-Efficacy and Confidence on Violence Prevention Counseling: A National Study. Maternal and Child Health Journal. 2008; 12 (1): 75-82.
Flaherty EG, Sege RD, Griffith J, Price LL, Wasserman R, Slora E, Dhepyasuwan N, Harris D, Norton D, Angelilli M, Abney D, Binns HJ. From suspicion of physical child abuse to reporting: Primary care clinician decision-making. The Child Abuse Reporting Experience Study Research Group. Pediatrics. 2008; 122 (3):611-619.
Jones, R, Flaherty E, Slora E, Price LL, Binns H, Abney D, Harris D, Christoffel KK, Sege R. Clinicians’ Description of Factors Influencing their Reporting of Suspected Child Abuse: A Report of the Child Abuse Reporting Experience Study Research Group. Pediatrics. 2008; 122(2): 259-266.
Luginbuhl LM, Newman TB, Pantell RH, Finch SA, Wasserman RC. Office-based treatment and outcomes for febrile infants with clinically diagnosed bronchiolitis. Pediatrics. 2008;122(5):947-954.
Pascoe JM, Little DR, Forbis SG, Slora EJ. Patient visits to a midwestern primary care practice-based research network: a comparison to two national primary care data sets. Southern Medical Journal. 2008;101(7):693-698.
Slora E, Steffes J, Harris D, Clegg H, Norton D, Darden P, Sullivan S, Wasserman R. Improving Practice Immunization Rates Through Distance-Based Quality Improvement: A Feasibility Trial from PROS. Clinical Pediatrics. 2008; 47 (1):25-36.
Finch SA, Barkin SL, Wasserman RC, Dhepyasuwan N, Slora EJ, Sege RD. Local-IRB review of national practice-based research network (PBRN) studies: helpful or redundant? Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine. Accepted for publication.
Slora EJ, Bocian AB, Herman-Giddens ME, Harris DL, Pedlow SE, Dowshen SA, Wasserman RC. Assessing inter-rater reliability (IRR) of Tanner staging and orchidometer use with boys: A study from PROS. Journal of Pediatric Endocrinology and Metabolism. Accepted for publication.
MA State Co-coordinators - Drs. Ben Scheindlin and David Norton
The Committee on School Health has two primary functions. The first function is to be a resource for the 351 public school physicians in Massachusetts, 54% of whom are not pediatricians. The Committee provides networking activities, didactic presentations, and legislative lobbying on areas of school health interest. The second function is to provide a forum for any pediatrician who has an interest in school health issues, whether they are school physicians or not.
Along with the MCAAP CME Committee, the School Physicians Committee was instrumental in developing and planning the 2008 Annual CME Program entitled “"Pediatricians Bridging the Gap between Office and Schools". The Committee is currently being re-oriented to optimize its effectiveness.
Report Submitted by Immediate Past Chair - Dr. Linda Grant
Suspected Child Abuse and Neglect Committee (SCAN) - The Committee continued to meet on a quarterly basis and was active on a number of different projects.
5. NETWORKING WITH OTHERS IN OUR FIELD: The committee has arranged monthly WebEX on-line case reviews with our members and child abuse specialists in the New England area (RI, ME, CT, NH, VT) for professional development and support.
Respectfully submitted, Rebecca Moles, M.D., FAAP - Chair