SDCMS Board Holds Retreat to Plan for Future

THE SAN DIEGO COUNTY MEDICAL SOCIETY board of directors recently held its annual retreat at the Omni Rancho Las Palmas Resort in Rancho Mirage. Board members were briefed on issues and the latest developments concerning health policy and physicians at a multitude of entities. They also underwent training in legislative and political advocacy.

As is tradition, the retreat was led by SDCMS’s Presidentelect, Nick Yphantides, MD, who provided one of the most effective ice-breaker exercises many of us have ever experienced to help board members get to know each other better and on a much more personal level.

Former CMA President Bob Wailes, MD, former SDCMS President Will Tseng, MD, MPH, former SDCMS President Sergio R. Flores, MD, and Tim Murphy, MD, all trustees on the California Medical Association Board, provided updates on the statewide organization’s latest activities and positions on a number of issues.

Current SDCMS President Lase Ajayi, MD, discussed the Strategic Framework for the County Medical Society as part of the organization’s ongoing plan for the future and also provided an update on recent activity from the Ameri- can Medical Association.

SDCMS Legislative Committee chair Robert Hertzka, MD, a true veteran of the intersection of politics and medicine at both the local and statewide levels, offered a dynamic training session for the board on effective advocacy.

Steve Koh, MD, offered a sobering presentation on the difficult challenges facing San Diego County’s Behavioral Sciences Department and the growing crisis in mental health in our county.

Adama Dyoniziak, executive director of Champions for Health, the nonprofit group affiliated with SDCMS that provides services for the medically underserved, gave an extremely positive update on the successes of the past three years and the organization’s unprecedented achievements in dramatically increased services to San Diego County’s poor and minority communities.

SDCMS CEO Paul Hegyi provided the latest update on the political priorities of the California Medical Association heading into the 2024 election.

The board left the retreat with a renewed sense of purpose and a sense of optimism for what the next year will bring in protecting the rights of patients and their physicians.