What The LCMS Is Doing For You…
Local Advocacy: LCMS President, Dr. Craig Sweet, has worked tirelessly on Medicare’s flawed sustainable growth rate (SGR). He and President-elect, Dr. Shahid Sultan, traveled to Washington, DC and continually contacted legislators to let them know exactly how this would affect our local physicians and local economy. He also worked with the news media in promoting the Medical Society. The Medical Society placed advertisements in the local papers regarding the SGR. Our Board of Governors wrote numerous editorials on the state of health care for the News-Press. Lee County Medical Society leadership continues to regularly meet with legislators to address issues that affect health care.
Legal Advice: The Florida Healthcare Law Firm provides LCMS members with a Healthcare Lawyer on Call Program that provides 15 minutes of free legal advice. Call the Medical Society for more information and phone number.
LeePAC: A benefit of membership that works to elect and support pro-medicine legislators to the Florida House and Senate.
Professional Benefits: LCMS members are provided 1) discounts through FPIC for malpractice insurance 2) OptaComp provides workers compensation insurance for members, dividend checks are provided [these checks often make up for LCMS yearly dues] 3) we are working on a Group Purchasing Program, that will provide all members discounted rates on common expenditures.
Education: The Lee County Medical Society has begun a Mentoring Program with Florida Gulf Coast University to provide for pre-med students and will provide lecturers from our own membership to speak to students. We will also begin working with Edison State College in the future.
We also offer a Speaker’s Bureau to the public that speaks to various organizations in our community on various health topics.
Bulletin: Ten issues of the Bulletin, one of the most popular facets of the LCMS, are mailed to all members to keep them up to date on issues affecting the practice of medicine. The Bulletin is now available in pdf format and will also be archived on the LCMS website.
Membership Directories: Physicians and staff only, the 2010 Membership Telephone/Fax Directory contains information for all active members of the LCMS. Each physician and their office manager receive a copy of the directory and additional copies are available. Pictorial Directory is published every two years and is a marketing piece to the medical community and to the public free of charge.
Web Site: (http://www.lcmsfl.org). Patients in the community are now able to find our physician members more easily than ever! We also provide links directly to your website from your member page.
Physician Referrals: The LCMS office offers free referrals and background checks for patients.
Practice Information: The LCMS offers free informational packets for physicians who are starting a practice. We also offer packets for physicians who are relocating or retiring. We provide information on how Florida laws/statutes influence physicians’ practices.
Public Relations: The Public Relations Committee continues to work hard to come up with new ideas on how to promote medicine.
Physician Volunteerism: 1) The McCourt Scholarship Fund provided funds for five children with diabetes to attend Florida Camp for Children and Youth with Diabetes. 2) We support the Lee We Care Program. This program will be administrated by United Way of Lee and provides ‘pro bono’ services to eligible low-income, uninsured adults needing specialty care that do not qualify for Medicare or Medicaid.
Meetings and Events: Five membership meetings a year bring members the opportunity to network and direction to gain mandatory CME. LCMS offers programs to help with the running of your practice. We also hold social events in conjunction with the LCMS Alliance. These include meet & greets, new members welcome events, a potluck in paradise dinner, and Doctor's Day events.
