Fall 2011 Newsletter

With my Presidential tenure now coming to a close, I would like to thank the Membership again for the honor and a privilege to serve as the Mid-Atlantic Section President over the last year.

During the course of 2010-2011, I have had the pleasure of working with the New England Section President, Dr. Timothy Hopkins, Dr. Adam Klausner (of the Mid-Atlantic Section) and Dr. Adam Feldman (of the New England Section) in organizing the upcoming Joint Meeting of our organizations taking place in Orlando. I am amazed by how much the Section Program Committees and leaderships have put into this program, although I think the amount of thought and careful coordination will be obvious to all in attendance. The meeting will feature new highlights for our Section. For example, we will host a Young Urologist Forum that incorporates a Urology Jeopardy game pitting recent graduates against current resident and fellows, will hold a Product Showcase for our industry partners, and present the first ever Paul Schellhammer Lecture in Urologic Oncology to both of the Memberships on Thursday afternoon. These conference highlights will compliment the strong science and opportunities for our Memberships to relax and socialize with colleagues and families.

The establishment of the Paul Schellhammer Lecture in Urologic Oncology is something I am extremely proud of and I thank the Mid-Atlantic Section Membership and Dendreon Corporation for their support. Dr. Paul Schellhammer is a devoted member and Past President of the Mid-Atlantic Section as well as a former President of the American Urological Association; this annual lecture was developed to honor him and all his contributions to the region’s urologic community. Dr. Paul H. Lange of the University of Washington School of Medicine has been invited to give the inaugural talk – the title of his lecture, “Some Possibly Heretical Observations about Local Control and New Therapies in Prostate Cancer”. I hope you will all plan to be there on Thursday, November 3rd at 4:00 PM.

In closing, I congratulate the Section Board of Directors, Committees, and Representatives to the AUA for all their diligent efforts over this year and thank them for their support. They have truly made this year productive with the various initiatives we’ve had in motion. They, in particular, have made my Presidential year most enjoyable.

Yours truly,

Harry P. Koo, MD

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I would like to begin by thanking all those who have contributed to the organization of next month’s Joint Meeting with the New England Section, AUA. In particular, thank you to all the authors, lecturers and industry supporters for being a part of the program – we are all looking forward to a great conference. We should all express a special thanks to Dr. Adam Klausner of the MAAUA and Dr. Adam Feldman of the NEAUA who served as Program Committee Co-Chairs this year and did an outstanding job assembling a program all urologists and allied professionals should enjoy. Having been part of many scientific meeting planning teams, I know the thoughtfulness and hard work they have put in over the past 12 months – congratulations to both of them and their Program Committee.

Attendees will not only enjoy the meeting’s science, but will also want to take advantage of the opportunities the Sections will have to network and socialize. An entertaining social program is planned for attendees, guests and children.

The Section has been busy with other initiatives as well. I would first like to acknowledge the Section Residents Committee, a Committee formed last year, who recently conducted a survey of residents within the Section on educational preferences. The results of their survey are available on the MAAUA website and are also published in this newsletter. I hope the Committee will continue with their momentum and take on news projects in the coming year. If any Mid-Atlantic Section residents are interested in joining this Committee, please contact the Committee Chair, Jiakai Zhu, at [email protected].

Please be reminded that the AUA Leadership Program is collecting applications for the 2012-2013 class until December 30, 2011. This program, which has graduated some of our Section’s top urologists and future leaders, seeks ABU certified urologists 15 years or less out of training who have an interest in developing their leadership skills to serve their Sections and the AUA. I encourage anyone interested to apply or reach out to one of the recent graduates to gauge if this may be something worth pursuing.

Our Section membership remains strong, with urologists, non-physician scientists, and residents and fellows composing the framework of our approximately 1150 member roster. The Section Board of Directors, in conjunction with the AUA, has recently addressed the concept of including non-physician providers in our membership. This is a topic Section leadership will continue to focus on at its Board meeting next month in Orlando and we hope to share more information with Section members shortly thereafter.

As I mentioned in my article in the spring 2011 edition of the Newsletter, the all-electronic Newsletter format is new to the Section and I hope you find the layout easy to read and convenient. All Section newsletters are archived on the MAAUA website. If you have any improvements to suggest, please send me or the new Secretary a note and we will be sure to consider your thoughts for the next issue.

I thank you all for providing me with the opportunity to serve you as Secretary of the Mid-Atlantic Section for the past 4 years. I am excited to meet old friends from the New England Section at our first Joint Meeting!

Louis L. Keeler, III, M.D.

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I want to begin my brief report by thanking the Section for providing me the opportunity to serve as your Treasurer. The experience has been very rewarding and I look forward to continuing to serve in the coming year.

At the Business Meeting last year at Nemacolin, I provided members a report of the Section’s finances. I am happy to report that our finances remain in good order and that despite the slow recovering market, our investments are healthy; I thank Allegheny Investments for their strategic oversight of our portfolio. I will present an updated report on our finances during the 2011 Business Meeting on November 5th and I encourage you to bring any questions you may have to this forum for discussion.

While finances are strong, the Board of Directors continues to search for proactive cost cutting measures. In keeping with 21st century communication and environmental trends, during its March 27th meeting, the MAAUA Board agreed to no longer print the Section By-Laws and membership roster in Annual Meeting program books, as both the By-Laws and roster are available on the MAAUA website. I thank the membership for its understanding and stewardship and encourage you to review both electronic documents at your leisure. If anyone is interested in obtaining a printed copy, please contact the Section administrative office at [email protected].

And while being cost savvy is important to a Treasurer, so is maintaining relationships with our industry partners, who year after year contribute grants and exhibit at our meetings. I urge you all to visit our industry supporters in the exhibition hall during the Joint Meeting in Orlando to thank them for their continued sponsorship.

Again, thank you for allowing me to serve as your Section Treasurer. I look forward to seeing many of you next month in Orlando.

Stanley Zaslau, MD
Treasurer

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Strategic Planning – Significant work was accomplished for the Strategic Planning program for the October Board meeting. Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats (SWOT) analyses and supporting documentation from major program areas (Education, Research, Health Policy, International) were presented to the Board in October.

Annual Meeting –

•	Final Numbers:	DC 2011	San Francisco 2010
	Total Attendees	17,170	17,168
	Total Professionals	11,378	11,475
	Abstracts Accepted	2,338	2,178
	U.S./International Ratio	43% / 57%	42% / 58%

• Several changes are being planned for the 2012 Atlanta Annual Meeting. Dr. Badlani has been working with Drs. Lacy and McDougall, staff and faculty to compress the AUA Annual Meeting and eliminate Thursday from the Program. Therefore, the Atlanta Annual Meeting dates have been changed to May 19-23, 2012. As a result of the compression and a number of new initiatives, several activities will be shifted from their usual days at the Annual Meeting. Friday will focus on Research, including taking advantage of the CDC being in Atlanta. There will be a Residents Bowl in the Science & Technology Hall Saturday – Tuesday. The Plenary will break each day at 10:00 am and at 10:30 there will be a main plenary I and second smaller Plenary II in another location close to the main plenary. The dual plenary sessions will utilize AUA Board members as facilitators since the President and Secretary cannot be at both sessions. It is felt that this will provide for greater educational opportunity and make the Atlanta meeting more attractive. In addition, to make the Atlanta Annual Meeting more attractive, Live Surgeries will be conducted on Saturday. These Live Surgeries (7 cases) will be considered an Annual Meeting function rather than an Office of Education course and as such Industry Support will be sought to fully fund the educational offering for attendees. Advanced Practice Nurse/Physician Assistants will have a half day conference on Saturday afternoon with APN/PA courses track on Sunday. The Health Policy Forum will move to Monday. Portuguese Urology Program will move to Monday 12:00-5:00 pm. Global Perspectives and Late Breaking Science Forum will move to Tuesday at 1:00-2:30 pm and 2:30-4:00 pm, respectively. The Business Meeting will move to Wednesday from 12:30-1:30 pm followed by the “Take Home Messages” from 1:30-4:00 pm and then the AUA Awards Dinner Wednesday evening. The elimination of Thursday will reduce the burden on attendees since they will be away from their practice for fewer days.
• Significant discussions occurred with the American College of Osteopathic Surgeons (ACOS), to hold the summer ACOS DO Urology Discipline specialty meeting during the AUA Atlanta Annual Meeting. The ACOS/ACOS Urology Discipline has agreed to hold their meeting during the AUA Annual Meeting on Saturday from 7:20 am – 5:10 pm.

III. AUA Foundation

• The Board-approved Opt-Out $100 Member donation to AUAF has been added to the 2012 dues statement.
• Know Your Stats Campaign – redeveloping the NFL Playbook to include a “What’s next?” Survivorship piece; want to let men know what the next steps should be once they have been diagnosed, and the issues stemming from the diagnosis and treatment from erectile dysfunction to incontinence. AMS is funding the new Playbook. In addition, a new public service announcement was developed with Roger Goodell, NFL Commissioner, and is being widely disseminated at NFL games. AUA Foundation was prominently listed on New Orleans Saints’ pre-game tickets and many other teams are implementing prostate cancer awareness activities.
• The NFL Player Care Foundation has renewed its annual grant (2011/2012) for the AUAF to provided NFL players with prostate cancer information and screening. AUAF is currently coordinating with NFL PCF to form comprehensive health care events. Upcoming events are scheduled for the third week of October in Houston, Texas, in Boston October 31, 2011 Patriots Alumni Homecoming Event, and Spring 2012 for Chicago alumni chapter event.

IV. Facilities

• Urologic History Museum Exhibit Opening Reception was held on July 14 with over 150 non-staff and staff attendees, including members of the press representing Washington Post Express. The event focused on recognizing and honoring Dr. Engel for his significant commitments as AUA’s Curator. Dr. Engel has transitioned Curator responsibilities to Dr. Michael Moran as approved by the Board. The 2012 Annual Meeting Exhibit will be called “Skeletons in the Closet: Injustices and Indignities in Medicine”.

V. Health Policy: Government Relations & Advocacy, Guidelines, Practice Management, Quality, and Reimbursement & Regulatory

• 5-ARI – During the summer, following a meeting of the FDA’s Oncologic Drugs Advisory Committee (ODAC), the agency issued a drug safety communication (DSC) regarding the use of 5-alpha reductase inhibitors, citing an increased risk for aggressive prostate cancer in men taking these drugs. This DSC raised a number of key concerns for urologists, including how the announcement would impact the AUA’s joint guideline, “The Use of 5-Alpha Reductase Inhibitors for Prostate Cancer Chemoprevention” and also how practicing urologists should handle the FDA’s recommendation that physicians should, “prior to initiating therapy with 5-ARIs, perform appropriate evaluation to rule out other urological conditions, including prostate cancer, that might mimic benign prostatic hyperplasia.” Though the FDA did not solicit the AUA’s input (in advance or following its issue) on this alert, AUA leaders felt it was imperative to proactively engage the agency to discuss our concerns, as well as the medicolegal risks raised by this mandate. In our letter to the FDA, we pointed out that the alert contained nebulous language that puts physicians at risk for misinterpretation and legal complications. In response to our letter, the FDA invited AUA leaders to meet at its headquarters near Washington, DC, to discuss our concerns. Drs. Schellhammer, Thrasher, Wolf and McVary have been diligently preparing for the October 21st meeting with the FDA. We are hopeful that this opportunity to meet with FDA leaders will not only help us in modifying the DSC language, but also open strong channels of communication between the AUA and the FDA.

• Synthetic Surgical Mesh for POP and SUI – In July 2011, the FDA issued a safety communication about the use of transvaginal synthetic surgical mesh to treat pelvic organ prolapse (POP), and announced that its Obstetrics & Gynecology Medical Devices Panel would hold a two-day public hearing in September to discuss the safety and efficacy of the material not only for POP, but also for stress urinary incontinence (SUI). AUA Health Policy Council members and staff seized this opportunity to present data and testimony attesting to the benefits and risks of using mesh for these conditions. Together with input from Dr. Badlani and leaders from other specialty and subspecialty societies, we worked to secure speaking opportunities and prepare testimony. Dr. Chris Winters represented the AUA at the hearing, and was joined by Dr. Victor Nitti of SUFU and groups such as the American Urogynecologic Society, the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the Society of Gynecologic Surgeons. The panel also heard testimony from watchdog groups, as well as patients whose POP and/or SUI was treated with synthetic mesh, some with detrimental outcomes and others with great success. Dr. Winters also pointed out that it is important to consider that complications can also occur in patients who undergo non-mesh procedures and that, in many patients, the mesh appears safe and well-tolerated with improved anatomical outcomes. The AUA also reinforced the differences between the use of mesh to treat POP vs. the use of synthetic mesh midurethral slings to treat SUI, noting that the AUA Guidelines for the Surgical Treatment of SUI lists synthetic midurethral slings as appropriate surgical therapy, with an acceptable risk-benefit profile. Groups that presented stressed that careful patient selection, a rigorous and standardized consent process for patients and appropriate training for surgeons is critical to successful mesh surgery, and that steps should be taken to standardize education and credentialing for surgeons performing procedures with mesh. Many societies, including the AUA, pointed out a strong need for post-market surveillance of mesh, as well as patient registries to better track outcomes in those patients treated with synthetic mesh vs. native tissue repair. Following the hearing, which included not only public testimony but also presentations from FDA analysts and industry representatives, the panel recommended that synthetic mesh used to treat POP not be withdrawn from the market, but rather that it be re-classed as a Class III medical device. This means that makers could be required, as part of the approval process, to provide additional data to support safety and efficacy. The panel recommended that synthetic mesh for SUI remain a Class II device, meaning that, as part of the FDA’s Development & Approval process, manufacturers of the products are not required to present extensive pre-clinical testing data, but rather a pre-market approval (PMA) demonstrating that the device is “at least as safe and effective” or “substantially equivalent” to a device already legally marketed in the United States. The FDA will likely consider its Panel recommendations this fall.

• Health Policy Vice-Chair Search Committee- Dr. Schlossberg’s term as Health Policy Chair will end May 31, 2012, and Dr. Dave Penson will ascend from Vice-Chair to Chair. As approved by the Board, Dr. Lacy appointed an HP Vice-Chair Search Committee, sent several announcements to the membership and received 10 applicants. The applicant field is considered to be highly qualified and competitive. The Search Committee will convene via teleconference on October 25th to select the finalists to be interviewed on November 19th at the AUA HQ subsequent to the HP Council and related committees meeting at the AUA.

• Imaging Attacks – To help pay for the Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) program, the Senate Finance Committee sought to introduce a provision in the United States-South Korea Free Trade Agreement Implementation Act that would increase the equipment utilization rate for advanced diagnostic imaging equipment from 75 percent to 90 percent. This provision would provide approximately $400 million in estimated savings. To help prevent this provision from being included, AUA’s Federal Manager, along with the Coalition for Patient Centered Imaging (CPCI), of which the AUA is a member, immediately began contacting members of the Committee and issued a letter opposing the cuts. Fortunately, the opposition against this provision from our coalition, as well as many others in the healthcare community, persuaded the Senate Finance Committee to scrap this provision and find an alternative way to pay for the bill. However, as the budget/debt limit debates continue, we expect to see more of these last-minute attacks emerge. We will be keeping a very close watch for such attacks and will continue to engage our champions on the Hill to ensure that no harmful provisions are attached to these bills.

• The AMA Annual House of Delegates (HoD) meeting, held June 17-22 in Chicago, is the primary business meeting of the AMA where the HoD debates and votes on proposed reports and resolutions and elects new members to the Board of Trustees and a variety of lesser councils and committees. GR&A staff worked with AUA’s three delegates, William F. Gee, MD, Willie Underwood, MD, MPH, Aaron Spitz, MD, and alternate delegate, Roger Satterthwaite, MD as well as American Association of Clinical Urologists’ (AACU) delegate Jeffrey Kaufman, MD in covering each of the reference committee and business meetings. In addition, Dr. Underwood began serving on the Council on Legislation.

  More than 400 resolutions and reports were proposed at this meeting. Much of the media attention and debate focused on AMA’s stance on the individual mandate to purchase health insurance provision of the Affordable Care Act, the healthcare reform law. After more than three hours of debate, the HoD, in a 2-1 ratio vote, elected to reaffirm existing policies, H-165.838, which supports insurance coverage for all Americans, and D-165-966, which advocates that state governments test different models to cover the uninsured. In a separate resolution, the AMA HoD voted that the AMA advocate for the following changes to the ACA:

  –	Repeal of the Independent Payment Advisory Board (IPAB);
  –	Study of the Medicare Cost/Quality Index;
  –	Repeal the non-physician provider non-discrimination provision;
  –	Enactment of comprehensive medical liability reform;
  –	Enactment of long-term Medicare physician payment reform including permitting patients to privately contract with physicians not participating in the Medicare program;
  –	Enactment of antitrust reform to permit independently practicing physicians to collectively negotiate with health insurance companies; and,
  –	Expanding the use of health savings accounts as a means to provide health insurance coverage.

• Scope of Practice Partnership Meeting – The AUA was invited to attend an “invitation only” meeting regarding the AMA Scope of Practice Partnership, a group of physician organizations that works with the AMA on scope of practice issues on the state and federal level. Presentations at the meeting focused on lessons learned from a bill passed in Kentucky that allowed optometrists to perform lasik surgery and other eye procedures that were previously done by the ophthalmologists. This bill was introduced, put on a fast track approval process in the Kentucky legislature and was immediately signed into law. The entire process from introduction to signature was less than two weeks. From this experience, we learned the importance of monitoring the activities of state and federal PACs, especially the sudden growth of non-physician trade association PACs. According to the presenters, the optometrist group in Kentucky dramatically increased their PAC activity in the two years immediately preceding the introduction of this bill. For those two years, they made inroads with several key members of the legislature and provided them significant campaign contributions, yet did not ask for anything. Then, this past year, they introduced and passed their bill. The suggestion was to be very proactive, be alert to what opposition groups are doing, and build coalitions within states to be ready to immediately respond to these types of challenges.

• UROPAC is initiating a Fall Contest – “Corral a Colleague.” This contest focuses on building UROPAC’s membership by encouraging existing members to reach out to other urologists and encourage them to join. As new members join UROPAC, they will provide the name of the existing member who “recruited” them. We will then assign “points” to the recruiting member for each new person they bring in. The more a new member donates, the more points the recruiting member receives. The individual with the most points will receive free airfare to and lodging at the 2012 JAC. In addition, UROPAC will reward the Section securing the highest percentage of new members by sponsoring a reception at that Section’s Annual Meeting.
• New York Department of Public Health – In 2008, practices performing office-based surgery in New York were required to become accredited. As a requisite of the accreditation, offices were required to report adverse events to the New York Department of Public Health’s Patient Safety Center. The New York Department of Public Health contacted the AUA to see if we could assist this organization with getting the information about the adverse events reported by urology. Drs. Ron Kaufman, Jr., AUA Coding and Reimbursement Chair and Dr. Steven Trauzzi, President of the New York Urology Society, participated in a call with AUA staff and staff of the New York Department of Health to help them understand the adverse events and why they might have occurred. There were 117 adverse events reported between 2008 and 2009 for genitourinary procedures. Drs. Kaufman and Trauzzi are working with the New York Department of Health to see how we can disseminate information to our New York members.

VI. Industry Relations

• AUA responded to Pfizer’s recent Call for Grant Applications in Women’s Health. AUA’s proposal was selected from among 60 grant applications received from 41 different organizations. AUA was awarded a grant to develop a series of five case-based regional activities for primary care and allied providers. AUA will partner with Spaced Ed to develop enduring activities and Healthcare Performance Consulting to report on outcome measures. In addition to the grant from Pfizer, AUA was awarded additional funding from Astellas to develop a series of five case-based regional activities for primary care and allied providers.

VII. International

• The 3rd Annual USI/AUA Annual Board Review course and In-Service Examination in India was held on August 4-6, in Hyderabad, India with Drs. Ajay Nehra (AUA HCL), Elspeth McDougall (OE Chair), Dean Assimos, and Todd Nippoldt serving as faculty for the course. Feedback from the USI leadership has been very positive and the USI has agreed to make AUA IRIT membership mandatory for course participants in 2012 (100+ attendees). The AUA awaits the USI’s official report from the event, but feedback from the Drs. Nehra and McDougall as well as the other course faculty has been extremely positive.

• The inaugural CUA/AUA Joint Urology Residency Training program in China will be held on October 23-25, 2011 in Beijing. Staff and Dr. Badlani have developed the AUA portion of the program. Faculty for the course will include Drs. Sushil Lacy, Gopal Badlani, Tom Lue, and John McConnell as well as Drs. Robert Grubb and Marcus Quek who are serving as the AUA/CUA Academic Exchange Scholars. Staff has received a block membership form for the 40 Chinese residents that will participate in the inaugural program.
• Dr. Robert Flanigan accepted the position of International Education Consultant, a contract has been signed and regular meetings have been established with the IEC, Dr. Badlani and staff.

VIII. Marketing, Communications and Information Systems

• The IS team is developing a video portal that will provide online access to all the AUA videos for various committee members and groups.

• Media: In August, the AUA was featured in 624 news articles. Top stories focused on incontinence following prostate surgery and use of scans in treating prostate cancer. Top outlets include the Associated Press, the Denver Post, Doctor’s Guide and Medscape.
• Social Media: 1,990 Facebook fans; 20,020 Facebook post views; 15,201 YouTube Channel views; 10,910 YouTube Video Views; 1,001 Twitter followers and AUA posted 14 tweets in August.

IX. Membership

• Committees – APN/PA Membership Committee webpage was launched. Young Urologists Committee’s Dr. Michael Ost of the Northeastern Section accepted the position of vice chair of the Committee.

• Society of Genitourinary Reconstructive Surgeons (GURS) has contracted with the AUA to perform their 2012 Male Reconstruction Fellowship Match.
• Dr. Gerald Brock was approved to be the CUA representative to the Section Secretaries/Membership Council.

X. Office of Education

• Dr. Fulgham and the Urologic Ultrasound Task Force have completed their work in developing criteria for American Institute for Ultrasound Medicine (AIUM) accreditation of medical practices performing urologic ultrasound.*

• After many years of holding AUA’s Basic Sciences course for residents in Charlottesville, the faculty and OE have decided to move it to Denver in 2013 and 2014. The decision to move the course was based on several reasons including attendee feedback.
• A GU Reconstruction Stakeholder Meeting was held at the AUA in April. A white paper has been drafted and was submitted to the AUA Board in October.*

XI. Publications

Journal of Urology:

• Dr. Larry Baskin was approved by the Editors to serve as the Pediatric Assistant Editor beginning in January 2012.

AUANews:

• The 2012 Editors for AUANews will be Drs. J. Quentin Clemens (Outcomes), Jorge Gutierrez (Spanish Edition), Ajay Nehra (Male Health), Michael Ost (Pediatrics), Glenn Preminger (Stones) and Ashutosh Tewari (Oncology).

USPSTF recommendation that the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test be downgraded to “D” status
(meaning the USPSTF does not recommend its use)

Recommended Next Steps

1. The AUA will release a broadcast email to its domestic members informing them of the USPSTF recommendation that the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test be downgraded to “D” status (meaning the USPSTF does not recommend its use). This e-mail will share the AUA position and the actions we are taking, include a copy of our release, and speak to next steps.

• Responsible: Wendy Isett/Patricia Banks

• Timing: 11:00 a.m. Friday, October 7th (assuming all necessary approvals can be secured in time)

Completed. A broadcast e-mail to AUA members was issued on Friday, October 7. The statement was posted to AUAnet.org and was featured in our social media outreach, and in the October 10 issue of the AUA Daily Scope.

2. The AUA will issue a statement in response to the USPSTF recommendations when they are released. This statement should also be provided to select media under embargo immediately. Communications has drafted this statement, and it is attached to this plan (this statement requires approval by the spokesperson, currently named as Dr. Lacy).

• Responsible: Wendy Isett/Patricia Banks

• Timing: Embargoed copy out October 7th

Completed. The AUA’s statement was released on the national health newswires, and to reporters in our database. Communications actively worked with reporters from the Wall Street Journal, CBS News, the New York Times, CNN and Medscape. Dr. Brantley Thrasher, as our official spokesman on this topic, conducted numerous interviews on Friday. (Note: The New York Times contacted the AUA asking to speak with Dr. Lacy; knowing that Dr. Lacy was traveling, we directed the reporter to speak with Dr. Thrasher as an AUA spokesperson). Additionally, Dr. Peter Carroll was featured on CNN’s “Paging Dr. Gupta” weekend segment (October 15 and 16), discussing the USPSTF recommendations and the AUA’s position.

Next steps: We are continuing to monitor ongoing coverage of this issue and monitoring coverage of the AUA’s response. We will also evaluate opportunities to submit opinion pieces (op-ed articles, letters to the editor) in response to articles being written.

3. Convert above statement into an audio news release (ANR) for use by national media outlets, as well as an opinion/editorial piece to “shop” to major national newspapers. Note that we now have PRWeb (as part of our PRNews contract) which is the ideal dissemination vehicle for audio news releases.

• Responsible: Wendy Isett/Patricia Banks

• Timing: ANR developed by Tuesday, October 11; released on same day USPSTF recommendations officially released

Update: Completed. We engaged a vendor to prepare and release our ANR, and taping was completed on Thursday, October 13. The release was sent out to 200 radio stations across the country on Friday, October 14, with 100 percent of stations accepting the release. As of October 20, the release had been aired by stations in 27 networks with more than 11 million impressions to date.

4. The AUA should convene a panel of experts (perhaps the current Prostate Cancer Detection Guideline panel) to prepare formal comments to the recommendations.

• Responsible: Guidelines staff, Beth Kosiak (Wendy Isett and Patricia Banks to provide support as necessary.

• Timeline: November 4th

Update: In progress. Guidelines Director Heddy Hubbard and Manager Abid Khan are coordinating comments from members of the AUA’s Early Detection of Prostate Cancer guideline panel. Once these comments are gathered, they will be compiled into a single set of formal comments for submission on behalf of the AUA.

5. AUA will utilize CapWiz’s media relations module to encourage AUA members to send letters to the editor in response to the USPSTF recommendations. This will be done through a general broadcast e-mail that links members to CapWiz.

• Responsible: Wendy Isett/Patricia Banks, Government Relations and Advocacy staff
• Timeline: E-mail/CapWiz content written and ready for release Monday, October 10; actual release on same day USPSTF recommendations officially released

Completed. A comprehensive call to action e-mail to AUA members was released to members on Tuesday, October 11. This e-mail urged members to get involved at the grassroots level, and included links to sample letters as well as talking points about PSA and the USPSTF recommendations and a patient information sheet from the AUA Foundation. This information was promulgated to members through social media outlets, the AUA Daily Scope and AUA electronic publications such as NetNews and UroSTAT! Links will also be available on AUAnet.org.

As of October 19, nearly 230 letters to the editor and 146 letters to Congress had been issued by AUA members through the CapWiz system.

6. The AUA Foundation should work with its constituencies, as well as the Prostate Cancer Roundtable or other like-minded groups to engage patients to respond with comments, letters to the editor and op-eds.

• Responsible: Foundation

• Timing: Immediate

Update: The Prostate Cancer Roundtable has taken the lead on this as they want the grassroots effort to be seen as a true patient/public effort versus such coming from a physician membership group/affiliate group. AUAF is using our web, twitter and Facebook to connect with advocate groups around the county (not just roundtable) – keep them posted on AUA positions and progress, and express support for positions consistent with AUA’s. AUAF also produced the patient one-pager to provide urology practices and patients with an understanding of the value of screening.

7. AUA Communication will work through all existing channels (web site, electronic publications, broadcast e-mails) to promote our activity to members and engage them in any and all grassroots efforts relating to the USPSTF recommendations. A comprehensive plan will be developed and distributed by Monday, October 10.

• Responsible: Wendy Isett/Dana Gugliuzza/Patricia Banks

• Timing: Wednesday, October 12

Update: Ongoing. The AUA has used social media to push out messages about the USPSTF recommendations, including our response and information on how members can get involved and take action at the grassroots level. A special rotator ad will be prepared for use on AUAnet.org urging visitors to the site to get involved and take action.

On Tuesday, October 11, the AUA participated in a “Tweetchat” on Twitter with ABC News Health Correspondent Dr. Richard Besser. (ABC News producers invited the AUA to participate as a special guest to share our responses and position on the recommendations.) The Tweetchat was also attended by USPSTF chair Dr. Virginia Moyer, Drs. Deepak Kapoor and Carl Olsson, and patient advocacy groups including the Prostate Cancer Foundation and UsToo. Other urologists from around the country lent their voices to the discussion. The AUA Foundation was a supporting participant in the session, retweeting AUA messages as well as tweets from other participants.

On Thursday, October 13, Communications worked with Drs. Brantley Thrasher and John Lynch to film short sound bites about what the USPSTF recommendations mean for patients and how, in their own experiences, the PSA test has improved prostate cancer diagnosis and care. These videos were pushed out through our social media channels and will be featured on the AUA’s YouTube site. These clips will be used in our ongoing outreach, and as of October 18, had been viewed nearly 650 times.

A News Center area was also created on www.AUAnet.org to showcase this issue and our activity with the USPSTF recommendations. This page includes links to our advocacy alerts, press releases and positions, and videos of Drs. Lynch and Thrasher. On Monday, October 17, this page was announced to members in our second outreach e-mail, which illustrated our activity and urged members to get involved.

8. Coordinate a “Congressional Letter of Outrage” for Members of Congress to sign and share with HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, urging her to reject the USPSTF recommendations against PSA.

• Responsible: Government Relations & Advocacy team

• Timing: Week of October 17.

Update: We are working with the HP team on a number of activities including some concepts/strategies presented by Vicki Hart (AUA’s lobbyist) and a congressional letter to the HHS Secretary (working on getting Senator Ron Wyden for the letter). Vicki Hart has also conversed with LUGPA’s lobbyist McManus.

9. Work with Members of Congress to prepare an op/ed or letter to the editor to speak out against the USPSTF recommendations and how they relate to the provisions contained in the PROSTATE Act.

• Responsible: Government Relations & Advocacy

• Timing: Week of October 17.

Update: Rep. John Barrow has agreed to author this op/ed. His office will prepare text and Communications will approve and assist with placement.

10. Provide AUA Call Center staff with a bank of information to provide to members who call requesting fax versions of our statement, sample letters, patient information, etc.

• Responsible: Wendy Isett
• Timing: Wednesday, October 12.

Completed.

11. Prepare and distribute an update on AUA activity to date for dissemination to AUA Sections, subspecialty societies and other appropriate affiliates.

• Responsible: Wendy Isett/Patricia Banks

• Timing: Wendy to have draft for review by COB October 12.

Completed. This e-mail was finalized and distributed on October 13-14.

12. Prepare and issue two “Week 2” update e-mails to AUA members, sharing campaign activity to date and why their continued activity and engagement are critical to spreading the word about the USPSTF recommendations and their impact on patient care. This message will provide the opportunity to showcase the national and local impacts the AUA has made on this issue, as well as reiterate the tools that are available for members to use to get involved (letters to Congress and the media, comments to USPSTF) and educate patients about the PSA test (Foundation one-pager).

• Responsible: Wendy Isett/Patricia Banks

• Timing: To be released on Wednesday, October 19.

Update: This e-mail was released on Monday, October 17, with more than 25 percent of recipients opening the e-mail. The message highlighted our activity, and also included a link to the dedicated AUAnet.org page. A second e-mail was released on Thursday, October 20.

14: Prepare and distribute “Week 3” outreach to AUA members.

• Responsible: Wendy Isett/Patricia Banks
• Timing: Week of October 24

The AUA Nominating Committee and Board of Directors have reviewed materials submitted by many worthy candidates for the position of AUA Treasurer-Elect. The next AUA Treasurer-Elect will be ratified and elected at the AUA Members Business Meeting in May 2012.

The Young Urologists Committee’s mission is to address the needs of urologists 10 years or less out of training. Since its inception in 2004, the Committee has hosted a Forum held at the AUA Annual Meeting with topics that have included malpractice defense, maintenance of certification, utilization of physician extenders and revenue opportunities. It has been the goal of Committee leadership to expand the Young Urologists Committee’s role to provide more to young AUA members. Representatives from all Sections of the AUA share thoughts and provide feedback during Committee meetings and work to develop goals, tools, and activities for young urologists. The Committee has created a webpage specific to young urologists that contains information and links to topics of interest to young urologists, including the American Board of Urology, the American Medical Association, Conflict of Interest information, the AUA Expert Witness Policy, frequently asked questions, AUA Leadership Program information, coding information, maternity leave policy for female urologists, contract negotiation and MOC guidelines. The webpage can be accessed at http://www.auanet.org/content/residency/young-urologists.cfm. Over the coming years the Committee hopes to expand exposure by supporting the creation of Section events, when possible, specifically geared towards young urologists.

We hope you visit us on the web or attend the Young Urologist Forum Jeopardy game (recent grads vs. residents & fellows) at the NEAUA/MAAUA Joint Meeting in Orlando. 

We first want to thank the Mid-Atlantic Section for allowing us the opportunity to participate in the AUA Leadership Program and also thank Dr. Steven Schlossberg who served as our mentor during the year.

The AUA Leadership Program was a wonderful opportunity that we both enjoyed and found valuable to the development of our careers. The year started out with a 2½ day course at the AUA headquarters – that weekend we were very busy as we were introduced to all the AUA has to offer, met with AUA staff, and learned about each individual department at the national office. We also had a number of lectures on leadership and had time to meet with Steve to get his thoughts on the program and what the year ahead would entail.

After that introductory weekend, we had numerous conference calls with Steve to discuss the program and various leadership matters and attended the AUA/AACU Joint Advocacy Conference in DC. During the DC meeting we were introduced to a number of political issues and had the chance to meet with our legislators to discuss issues that are important to us as urologists – a rewarding experience.

After graduation at the AUA, we were both asked to continue our involvement and assigned to different AUA Committees. We hope to represent the Section well and look forward to our future working with both the Section and the AUA national organization.

As recent graduates of the AUA Leadership Program, we strongly encourage all those interested in developing their leadership skills to applyfor the program. The deadline for applications is Friday, December 30, 2011.

Sincerely yours,

Kurt A. McCammon, MD & B. Mayer Grob, MD

Welcome ReceptionThese events are included in both attendee and spouse/guest registrations. Children are welcome at these events!

Thursday, November 3, 5:45 pm – 7:15 pm
We would like to welcome you to the meeting with a reception for socializing and networking. Light hors d’oeuvres and drinks will be served in Swan Ballrooms V-X.

Around the World Dinner
Friday, November 4, 6:30 pm – 10:00 pm
This themed dinner will feature food and activity stations from around the world. Munch on nachos while making traditional Mexican tissue flowers. Learn how to throw pizza dough before you eat it in Italy. Enjoy sushi in Japan and visit an artist to have a custom-made water color art of your name created. Finally, experience the magic of the USA and indulge in Buffalo wings and sliders. This will be a very family-friendly evening.

Presidents’ Reception and Banquet
Saturday, November 5, 6:30 pm – 10:00 pm
The reception will take place from 6:30 pm-7:30 pm, followed by dinner in the Osprey Ballroom. Join us as we celebrate the conclusion of our Joint Meeting.

Golf Tournament
Friday, November 4, 1:00 pm – 5:00 pm
The golf tournament will take place at Celebration Golf Course. Sign-up during online registration or on-site in Orlando.

Tennis Tournament
Friday, November 4, 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm The tennis tournament will take place at the tennis courts located on the Swan Hotel property. Sign-up during online registration or on-site in Orlando.

Section Beach Olympics
Saturday, November 5, 3:00 pm – 5:00 pm The Sections will compete in a variety of beach competitions. The entire family is welcome! This is complimentary event for all.

Competitions will include:

 

• Tug-o-War
• Sand Castle Building
• Volleyball
• Paddle Boat Races
  • Hospitality Suite: (Thursday, November 3rd – Saturday, November 5th, Swan Hotel Macaw & Terrace) – Includes a full hot breakfast each day.
  • Welcome Reception: (Thursday, November 3rd, Swan Hotel Ballrooms V-X)
  • Around the World Dinner: (Friday, November 4th, Swan Hotel Lake Terrace)
  • President’s Dinner: (Saturday, November 5th, Osprey Ballroom)Giant Jenga

    The AUA Hometown Heroes project is currently honoring New England Section member Dr. Samuel Broaddus of Portland, Maine. Since 1993 Sam had partnered with colleagues at Maine Medical Center and with the Haitian medical community to support the development of a sustainable health care system in Cap-Haitien, Haiti. More information on Dr. Broaddus’s work is available on the AUA William P. Didusch website and will also be available at the Joint Meeting next month.

    If you would like to nominate a Mid-Atlantic Section members for this honor, please contact Dr. Benjamin Lowentritt, Section Historian, at [email protected].

    Section members who are interested in being considered for the following AUA Committees are encouraged to apply directly to the AUA though the volunteer website. The AUA webpage includes a brief profile on each Committee which members should review prior to submitting their volunteer application form. The following Committees are accepting applications through AUAnet.org for open positions beginning in 2012.

    Audio Visual Education Council Laparoscopic, Robotic & New Surgical Technology Legislative Affairs Advanced Practice Nurses/Physician Assistants Membership

    Practice Guidelines Public Media Publications Update Series Urologic Diagnostic & Therapeutic Imaging

    For security purposes, all events during the 2011 Joint Annual Meeting require attendees to be registered and wear a registration badge. Please be sure to register in advance for spouse/guest registration. If you are bringing children to the meeting, please contact the Section offices to arrange for a children’s registration. Guests without badges will not be allowed into any social events and will not be able to participate in any meeting activities.

    Spouse/Guest Registration Includes:

  • Journal Club ( 2 responses )
  • Attending teaching rounds
  • AUA Educational review Manual, core curriculum
  • AUA Guidelines, Radiology conferences by Radiologist
  • Resident to Resident teaching both in OR and conferenceThank You to Joint Meeting
    Sponsors and Exhibitors
    

    Abbott  Allergan American Medical Systems American Urological Association, Inc AmeriPath, Inc. Amgen Inc. Astellas Pharma US, Inc. Astra Tech Inc. Auxilium Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Biolitec, Inc. Boston Scientific CBLPath, Inc. Coloplast Corp. Cook Medical Covidien/Leibel-Flarsheim  Dendreon Corporation Direx Systems Corp. Dornier Medtech EDAP Technology Inc. Endo Pharmaceuticals Ferring Pharmaceuticals Galil Medical Gyrus ACMI HealthTronics Hitachi Aloka Medical Intuitive Surgical, Inc. IVUMed Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Karl Storz Endoscopy-America, Inc.

    Know Error Lumenis MBA HealthGroup Meda Pharmaceuticals Medispec Ltd. Mediwatch USA Inc. MeridianEMR, Inc. Myriad Genetic Laboratories NextMed, LLC Percuvision, Inc. Pfizer Pharmaceuticals PLUS Diagnostics  Predictive Biosciences QDX Pathology Services Richard Wolf Medical Instruments Corp. Sanofi-Aventis Siemens Medical Solutions USA, Inc. Slate Pharmaceuticals Sterling Medical Services Strata Pathology Services Stryker United Medical Systems, Inc. UroChartEHR by Intuitive Medical Software Urologix, Inc. Uromatrix Medical Systems Uroplasty Watson Pharma, Inc. Wedgewood Pharmacy

     

    Future Meetings
    MAAUA

    70th Annual Meeting
    Loews Philadelphia Hotel
    Philadelphia, PA
    October 11-14, 2012 

    71st Annual Meeting
    The Greenbier
    White Sulphur Springs,
    West Virginia
    Octiober 24-27, 2013

    MAAUA Annual Business Meeting

    November 5, 2011
    8:00 – 8:30 AM
    Pelican Room, Walt World Disney Swan Hotel
    Section Members Only

    Minutes of the 2010 Annual Business Meeting are published in the Spring 2011 edition of the MAAUA Newsletter.

    The Section Residents Committee recently conducted a survey to evaluate regional residents’ and recently graduated regional residents’ educational preferences. Of the 64 individuals who completed the survey, 47 indicated they were current residents in the Mid-Atlantic Section, while 17 were recent residency program graduates. At least two respondents represented each program within the Mid-Atlantic states.

    The chart below indicates how regional residents are generally educated. The three top surveyed educational methods are: day to day clinical applications, self studying, and SASP questions. These top three education methods are representative of self-learning, while the other five methods are more typical of didactic learning.

     

• Respondents noted the 5 most helpful methods for resident education are clinical applications, self study, Self-Assessment Study Program (SASP) questions, Lecture (interactive, Attending run, Faculty run, outside Campbell’s Urology), and Journal/daily reading/review articles, while the 5 most useful educational materials (ranked) are Campbell’s Urology, SASP questions, Wieder’s Pocket Guide to Urology, AUA review course and review materials, and the AUA Core Curriculum.

  Graduates and senior level residents were asked to indicate specific methods or materials they found particularly useful through residency or for board preparation. The top 5 most useful methods or materials, according to the survey, are SASP questions, AUA Board review course/materials, Wieder’s Pocket Guide to Urology, Cambell’s Urology, and various city-based review courses. Other useful methods and materials mentioned include AUA educational review manuals, AUA updates/guidelines, Journals/repetitive reading, AUA Update Series, AUA Core Curriculum, and Urologic Surgical Pathology.

  As the recently developed AUA Core Curriculum is used by some training programs, the Section Residents Committee was interested in determining what specifically was utilized. 59% noted use was resident directed while 41% noted the Core Curriculum was Attending directed in their program. Respondents were also asked if they, as urology residents, are still doing a research year. 56% indicated no while 44% indicated yes.

  In closing, the MAAUA Section Residents Committee thanks all those who participated in this survey. To show our appreciation, all participants were entered into a raffle to win a \$25 iTunes gift card. I am happy to report that the winner is Dr. Matthew Sheldon.

  Update Your Membership Contact Information

  In order to best serve its membership, the Mid-Atlantic Section of the American Urological Association must maintain accurate records for effective and efficient communication.

  As a Member of the MAAUA, you have access to the Members Only area on the MAAUA website which provides you with the ability to update your Membership Information personally, each time your professional information or contact information changes. Updates are immediately reflected in the administrative office records.