You are invited!

September 4, 2020

Dear Members:

You are invited to the 115th Annual General Meeting of the AMA to be held on Monday, October 5 at 7 p.m. via Zoom. In this milestone year, with COVID-19 safety top of mind, we depart from tradition. This AGM will be held virtually and is therefore accessible to so many more members.

We are still finalizing plans, but the AGM will include a panel presentation by myself, Dr. Paul Boucher (who will be installed during the AGM as your president for the 2020-21 year) and Executive Director Mike Gormley. You’ll hear a candid assessment of the year just finished and our thoughts about what the AMA must do to succeed in the year ahead. This will include topics such as negotiations and the response to COVID-19. You will hear about organizational changes within AMA which will enable us to thrive and efficiently deliver value to you. We are streamlining the AMA to provide maximum value in a world with fewer program offerings and a greater need than ever before for powerful advocacy, representation and unity.

I invite you to join this AGM. There will be a Q & A session. This is an opportunity to interact directly with the leaders of the AMA, ask questions and hear how we plan to address the immediate challenges of government relations and negotiations. We are planning a successful future for our association, delivering the value that members require and deserve.

See you there!

Updates

Following my August 21 President’s Letter, we have replied in writing to government, as they requested, with a draft document for their consideration. We believe our proposal to government addresses their needs of budgetary certainty and sets out processes to manage toward that, while continuing to deliver timely access to high quality patient care. It is an approach that seeks to move forward in the interests of both patients and physicians. I will keep you posted.

Another outstanding item is the discussion paper from government exploring possible changes to the Health Professions Act as explained in my August 6 President's Letter. Thank you to members who sent thoughtful comments and concerns. We completed our response with that assistance and submitted it to government by the deadline.

The Fall Representative Forum will meet September 25 and 26 (via Zoom) to provide guidance to the Board for the months ahead. If you have thoughts or suggestions for your RF delegate, be sure to pass them along. If you’re unsure who represents you at the RF, you can email myRFdelegate@albertadoctors.org. Provide your name and the issue you'd like to discuss and we'll forward it to the appropriate RF delegate.

I believe we are steadfastly progressing toward resolution of many of the pressing issues that have daunted us this year. While we are all different and struggle with events from unique perspectives, our professional and personal lives have been impacted and stressed in ways we could not have anticipated. But we will stay the course; we will not lose sight of our goals and our commitments to ourselves, our families, friends, community and our patients. I am inspired by the strength and resiliency of our profession.

Your participation, dedication, resolve and our unity are lighting the way forward to success.

In your service,

Christine P. Molnar, MD, FRCPC
President, Alberta Medical Association