Page 10 - Delaware Medical Journal - January/February 2021
P. 10
PRESIDENT’S PAGE
Let’s review them individually. MSD
is committed to being engaged in our communities. Yet we must be more active in the process. We need to reach out to those in our communities who will work with us to help with issues where many patients are struggling: recognizing and treating various diseases, medication adherence, copays, mental health issues, and many more. The pandemic has pushed the opioid crisis into the shadows to some extent. With more around us losing their jobs, furloughed for long periods or taking on many short-term jobs just to make ends meet, depression, anxiety, and agitation have run rampant. Opioid use has fueled
in sight. MSD is working with others
in the state to assist. VOBOT (virtual launched in North Carolina linking
many different groups — physicians, pharmacists, mental health counselors, and more — together to support patients struggling with addiction. The main
as needing help. This may occur via
emergency room, and other locations.
We are losing many patients daily to this scourge and we must do what we can to help stop it.
Primary care needs our ongoing support. While telemedicine has helped practices regain footing, it has its drawbacks.
Many patients may not have access to the technology required. Anxiety, depression, loneliness, and more may not easily be treated through telemedicine. Sometimes just the in-person conversation, the touch of the hand — or the knowledge that one’s heart, lungs, abdomen, and skin, for example, are in good shape — requires
a visit and cannot easily be handled via
a computer screen. While adjustment to this new world is occurring, [the situation] is less than ideal for many. For those
in person, sometimes the wait for an
opening is long, and preventive measures sometimes don’t take precedent, albeit there is improvement occurring. For those that have put things off for too long due to the fear of leaving their homes or lack of interest in following up on known diseases, the consequences may not be reversible. Those providing primary care services are struggling in some sectors
their doors in the short term or have had to close completely. MSD must continue to support primary care and assist in the importance of follow-up, and ways of engaging with a physician in these
We must do a better job of having our members engage in these and other efforts to be a more vital and energized Society. We must reach out to new members and those who have been members but not involved in committees or other work. Mentoring and coaching is a goal for all of us. It would not be too much for each
of us to take on one or two members and introduce them to the work of MSD and help engage them in committee work. Almost all the committees of MSD are happy to have new members. As many of you know, committee participation does not usually take much time at all, and getting involved in a committee is a way of better understanding the important work of MSD. In addition, this is a way of learning and sharing new ideas, working with colleagues in perhaps a different
way than before, and truly being able to make a difference. Just being able to be a contact for a member who has questions or concerns would enhance our abilities to engage others. With the assistance of the outstanding MSD staff, who could ask for
Speaking of energy and vitality, I want
to see the DMJ, MSD’s signature journal, as one that is more robust, encompassing, and informative. A small group has been
meeting to work on improvement of the DMJ. Look forward to exciting changes in
We are a diverse organization. We practice in different areas of the state. Some of us are employed, others not. Some of us practice in cities, others in the suburbs or rural areas. One thing we all must recognize now and in the months and years ahead is that together, we are patients and communities, to lobby for their needs in Dover with the assistance of our able legal partners, and to educate and work with each other in ways we might not have thought possible before. We need to come together to continue to work on the ongoing challenges of the pandemic and the opioid crisis. We must engage our community leaders and work with them
to support our patients in a multitude of
reform and support it fully before it slowly fades out and becomes a thing of the past. and let our legislators know we will not rest without standing behind those in the trenches trying hard to provide the best care possible in preventing, diagnosing, and treating various diseases. We must also not forget we need to be the face of those around us. We need a more diverse membership and [leadership] at MSD going forward. We must recognize the importance of equality and respect for all of us and our patients. We can and will
do better. I am convinced MSD has the power and strength of a great staff and
its physician members. Let’s all come together in the upcoming year to be the best we can be for ourselves and those we serve. I am honored to work with you all in these lofty goals.
Matthew J. Burday, DO
President, Medical Society of Delaware
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Del Med J | January/February 2021 | Vol. 93 | No. 1
