PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE

Evolve With Us — Your Career, Our Health

ZEKE J. McKINNEY, MD, MHI, MPH

The past year and a half brought an immense amount of change for Twin Cities Medical Society with us stepping forward as an independent organization. While this portended an administrative shift in our business operations and reconsideration of how we can be successful amidst competing demands for physician time, social capital, and financial support, it provided the opportunity for us to focus more clearly on what makes us unique. In particular, this change reinforced our commitment to community-led initiatives to improve public health through use of our expertise and privilege as physicians. Broadly, we envision this goal manifesting through the overlapping and independent domains of education, advocacy, and programming. In terms of education, we not only hope to provide the settings and context in which physicians can gain additional expertise aligning with what they find relevant as their career progresses, but also to be the stewards of translating complex scientific, medical, and sociopolitical topics into concise and meaningful information digestible by the communities we serve. Our physicians continue to communicate gaps in mentorship and clinical experiences for trainees even prior to medical school, as well as in public health, leadership, and communication-based education that are necessary or at least highly-desired by practicing physicians. For trainees, we continue to have remarkable success with our rapidly growing Public Health Advocacy Fellowship and anticipate additional new partnerships wherein trainees can be paired with physicians and other trainees at all levels seeking to guide those coming behind us. For those of us already in practice (mid-career and beyond) we are exploring partnerships for programs and educational events. The broadening expertise of our physicians can then proceed to ensuring that contemporary topics of concern can be shared with individuals without medical expertise, which is an expanding need as the world faces multifaceted issues intersecting public health and public policy, such as emerging infectious diseases, issues of health equity, and the spread of medical misinformation. Such audiences could also include the institutions and representatives holding the power to instate change via public policy. However, advocacy stretches well beyond the domain of political change to include ensuring specific organizations—including the healthcare systems in which we work —become both aware of the needs of their communities and have the appropriate information and/or means by which to enact necessary change. Where TCMS differs from other organizations is that we seek to support data-driven decision-making regardless of the sociopolitical popularity of a topic of interest. This means that we reinforce individual and community-based advocacy for their own needs, rather than a privilege-based focus on what community needs are from an external perspective. For example, we want to ensure that engagement in health care is not precluded by social or medical stigmatization of certain conditions or behaviors, whether related to weight, diet, substance use, or occupation. This type of work requires a reorientation of our thinking from necessarily blaming individuals for their social or health outcomes, and rather facing and dismantling the systems resulting in these effects, which is where our programs aim to succeed. With these loci in consideration, TCMS seeks to expand our existing successes in public health education and advocacy via additional programs driven by our physicians and supported by our staff. We are encouraged by the leadership of our new CEO, Becky Timm, who quickly integrated herself throughout our organization to enact the changes we need as a unique physician-based organization no longer necessarily bound by geography, specialty, or politics. All of which needs physicians like you to speak up to let us know if there is a gap in what you want for the world around you. The consequent impact of our intent is that you as a physician will feel compelled, if not obligated, to be a part of this vision of physician leaders in the community. We know your resources are limited, so we truly ask you to consider where you want to put your time, money, and wisdom. Thank you for your ongoing support and engagement!