Dear Colleagues,
We fell a few points short. But hey, who wouldn't be happy with 97 out of 100?
Our headquarters building in suburban Chicago has earned the Environmental Protection Agency's Energy Star for its energy efficiency and environmental protection efforts, falling only three points short of a perfect score. Improvements we made over the past few years during remodeling work at the building, such as phasing in more energy-efficient lighting fixtures and maximizing the utilization of office space, helped us score so high.
The EPA's national energy performance rating system assesses how efficiently buildings use energy relative to similar buildings nationwide. A building that scores a rating of 75 or higher is eligible for the Energy Star. Commercial buildings that earn the Energy Star use an average of 40 percent less energy than typical buildings and release 35 percent less carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.
Now You be the 'Star'
The Energy Star award is just one example of how we, as an association, are trying our best to go – and stay – green. Another aspect of our eco-friendly approach is trying to reduce the use of paper on both our end and yours. That's one reason why our Membership and Field Services Division is offering online membership renewals. By going online to the AVMA membership renewal page, you can log in with your ID number and password and pay your dues today. If your employer pays your dues, or if you're the one in charge, you can also take advantage of our online group pay option. It's that easy.
The Best and the Brightest
Our profession is full of people who deserve recognition for their contributions to both animal and human health. And odds are good that you know a few of them. So why not nominate someone for one of the AVMA's many annual awards?
For years, the AVMA and the American Veterinary Medical Foundation have presented awards to those whose achievement and commitment reflect their passion for veterinary medicine in all its shapes and forms. From animal welfare to advocacy and research, the AVMA and the AVMF bestow more than a dozen veterinary achievement awards each year.
So let this year be the year you show your support for these wonderful champions of veterinary medicine. They deserve it, and you know it.
Good News on Health Insurance
It's not every day that we get good news regarding our health insurance. We often hear about rising premiums and deductibles, along with a shrinking pool of participating doctors and specialists.
Well, not this time. Many AVMA Group Health and Life Insurance Trust medical plan participants will receive a premium credit due to the insureds' health-care decisions that have helped the Trust control costs over the past year. The GHLIT Board of Trustees recently authorized issuance of a premium credit to active GHLIT medical plan participants who were AVMA members covered from May 1, 2008 to April 30, 2009. The credit is equal to 5 percent of the insured's annualized premium based on eligibility information as of August 2009. The credit will appear on November premium invoices.
But wait. The good news doesn't stop there. The Trust also announced that its cost-containment efforts mean that there will be no rate increase this year for many GHLIT medical plans – a move that counters national trends of annual premium increases.
Dr. DeHaven and I want to thank our GHLIT representatives and many of you for helping us control costs. The premium credit and the maintaining of rates are both testaments to how we can have a positive impact on both our health and what we have to pay to stay healthy.
Student Scholarships
Why stop with the good news now? Thanks to a partnership between Pfizer Animal Health and the American Veterinary Medical Foundation, hundreds of veterinary students attending AVMA-accredited veterinary schools will receive $2,500 scholarships annually through 2012.
The scholarships are designed to address veterinary student debt, ease the shortage of food animal and rural veterinarians in the country, and increase diversity in the profession. Pfizer expects to award up to 400 scholarships per year, with the Foundation administering the program.
We can't thank enough the folks at Pfizer for their generosity. This new scholarship program is a tremendous leap forward in helping us address some critical issues facing veterinary medicine. So if you know of any students interested in the program, please pass the information along. Applications for the spring 2010 scholarships are due by Nov. 13.
An even-better 'Ed'
When we launched AVMA Ed – our online continuing education service – back in December, we knew it would be popular, and we were committed to improving it along the way. Now, after more than 1,400 courses have been purchased since its inception, AVMA Ed will be even better thanks to improved audio and video quality, speedier video loading times and a smoother presentation flow. You can check out the new-and-improved AVMA Ed beginning Nov. 1.
So why the changes? Well, previous AVMA content was recorded during our annual convention as speakers delivered their educational programs to convention audiences. This year, the AVMA Ed team in our Convention and Meeting Planning and Publications divisions recorded each program in a studio designed specifically for our online service, which we believe will help eliminate distractions and improve your online CE experience. So whether you were able to attend our Seattle convention or not, you can still check out 25 hours of top-notch CE on AVMA Ed, earning credit along the way.
Oh, the Good Life
You might recall that we included a mention in last month's AVMA@Work about a new reference guide we created for the public that deals with zoonotic risks associated with hunting. It generated a lot of interest – so far, more than 400 of you have checked it out through the link we provided – and many of you commented on how informative you found it.
We've got another one for you this month. Titled "Dogs' Social Lives and Disease Risks," our latest reference guide – produced by our Communications Division and reviewed by our Council on Public Health and Regulatory Veterinary Medicine – is designed to provide useful information to the public about what dog owners can do to protect their pets from injury and disease at dog parks and in other social settings. We have no intention of frightening dog owners and keeping them from taking their dogs to play areas. No, our goal here is to let them know that if they follow some simple, common-sense approaches, they can play to their heart's content.
'Chipping' In
In keeping with a "more-information-is-better" theme, our Communications and Membership and Field Services divisions, with an assist from the AVMA Council on Veterinary Service, also recently updated our microchipping backgrounder and FAQ. There's been a lot of great information coming out over the past few years that fills a lot of the gaps about what microchip scanners can do and how effective they are. So we included that information in our updated backgrounder on microchipping, which is geared toward veterinarians and includes all the scientific references you need.
The FAQ, on the other hand, is designed for your clients and the general public, taking the pertinent information from the backgrounder and putting it into easily understood terms. We hope you find both the backgrounder and the FAQ useful. And don't forget to let your clients know about all the resources they can find on our Web site.
Thanks for taking the time to read this month's issue of AVMA@Work. Until next month, take care.
Sincerely,
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Larry R. Corry, DVM
President |
W. Ron DeHaven, DVM, MBA
Executive Vice President |
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