June 2013
A Roaring Fundraising Success
Thanks to TMA physicians and alliance members attending the TMA Foundation (TMAF) gala in May, more than $30,000 was raised for TMA’s Hard Hats for Little Heads program. Gala guests generously made donations ranging from $50 to $5,000, with the goal of matching a $10,000 anonymous gift. For more than 10 years, TMAF has worked to raise money to underwrite the program. Those efforts have allowed TMA to distribute around 20,000 helmets annually to Texas youth. If you want to help support the Hard Hats program, visit the TMA Foundation’s secure website.
Top of page
Countdown to National Immunization Awareness Month
August is National Immunization Awareness Month. Schedule your Texas Medical Association Be Wise — ImmunizeSM back-to-school vaccination event today. Time is running out. Please remember to order your supplies at least a month before your event. If you need ideas or help planning a vaccination or educational event, give TMA a call. We need your help to reach our vaccination and event goals by Dec. 31. Right now, the program has only had six shot clinics and two educational events.
Top of page
Free Helmets for Pediatricians
The Texas Pediatric Society, the Texas Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics (TPS), is Hard Hats for Little Heads’ newest partner. For the remainder of 2013, TPS will purchase up to 25 helmets for its members to give away, with an equal match from TMA. Now TPS members can get up to 50 FREE helmets for their next helmet giveaway. Be one of the first to take advantage as funding is limited for 2013. To get started, simply contact TMA, mention you’re a TPS member, and we’ll do the rest. Check out these ideas for an event.
Top of page
Hard Hats Tip: Events Can Help Increase Membership
When she took over as president of the Fort Bend CMS Alliance, Nomita Bajwa faced what many county presidents do — a declining membership. The Fort Bend CMS Alliance’s membership had dwindled during the past decade. However, that didn’t stop Ms. Bajwa.
The alliance had a good reputation in the community because of a family wellness health fair it sponsors in Sugar Land with the local school district, said Ms. Bajwa. But, for some reason, it was “invisible among physicians and their spouses,” she said, “perhaps because we never sponsored our own booth geared toward the community.”
“Our main goal became to increase the alliance’s ‘presence’ and educate our community and potential members to the value of being a member,” said Ms. Bajwa. Hard Hats provided a way to do that.
Ms. Bajwa was introduced to the Hard Hats program several years ago by her alliance district director, Barbara Samples of Victoria. Two years ago, Ms. Bajwa represented her alliance with a Hard Hats booth at the health fair. The booth generated a lot of interest and helped the alliance become known as the ‘Hard Hats’ people, she said.
The alliance had its second helmet giveaway in March, this time with help from 10 member physicians, and their spouses and children. Ms. Bajwa described Hard Hats as a program that “showcases to our community in a tangible way how physicians care for our kids.”
“Plus, it helped us the alliance and CMS become more of a team,” she said.
Top of page
Be Wise Tip: Make It a CMS Event
McLennan County Medical Society (MCMS) sponsored Get Healthy McLennan County, a health fair for adults that provided free health information and screenings, plus immunizations. JoAn Felton, executive director of the CMS, said the vaccinations were “the main draw for people to come out.” The vaccinations were funded with the help of a TMA Be Wise — Immunize Local Impact Grant.
Family physician and past MCMS president Charles Stern, MD, came up with the idea for the CMS-sponsored health fair to emphasize disease prevention and wellness. “The topics addressed at the event were issues local doctors identified as pressing concerns in the community,” he said.
McLennan CMS physicians administered health screenings, led panel discussions, and set up educational exhibits. The large number of physicians at the event and great turnout impressed nonprofits, such as the Alzheimer’s Research and Prevention Foundation, said Ms. Felton. They want to collaborate again on another community health event.
Ms. Felton described the health fair as “a way for physicians to give back in a way that had never been offered by the medical society.”
Top of page
Contact
For information about any of these TMA programs, contact Tammy Wishard, TMA’s outreach coordinator, at (512) 370-1470. You also can help support Hard Hats or Be Wise with a donation to the TMA Foundation, which provides funding for both.
Top of page
Upcoming TMA Outreach Events
Please let us know about your event, so we can promote it here and on the TMA website.
| Hard Hats for Little Heads |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Date |
|
|
Location |
|
|
Sponsor |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| June 1 |
|
|
Amarillo |
|
|
Steven Rossi, MD, and 24 Hours in the Canyon |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| June 1 |
|
|
Houston |
|
|
KSF Orthopaedic Center |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| June 5 |
|
|
Alpine |
|
|
Adrian Billings, MD, PhD |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| June 8 |
|
|
Little Elm |
|
|
Little Elm Medical Clinic |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| June 15 |
|
|
Flower Mound |
|
|
Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Flower Mound* |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| June 20 |
|
|
Tyler |
|
|
East Texas Medical Center |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| June 29 |
|
|
West |
|
|
Bell and McLennan CMS alliances, McLennan CMS |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| July 25 |
|
|
Tyler |
|
|
East Texas Medical Center |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Be Wise — Immunize |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Date |
|
|
Location |
|
|
Sponsor |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Aug. 3 |
|
|
Fort Worth |
|
|
Tarrant CMS Alliance; Immunization Collaboration of Tarrant County (ICTC) |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Aug. 7 |
|
|
Fort Worth |
|
|
Tarrant CMS Alliance; ICTC |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Combined Events |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Date |
|
|
Location |
|
|
Sponsor |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| May 11 |
|
|
Irving |
|
|
The University of Texas Southwestern Medical School Pediatric Interest Group |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
*First-time sponsor
Top of page