President's Column | February 2023

Mar 7, 2023

Dear Colleagues,

If ever there was a month with a theme, it’s February. For those who know me, and those who don’t but attended SDPA Miami last fall, it is no secret I love any opportunity to incorporate a theme. Birthdays, showers, holidays, girl’s night, date night, even daily attire give way to this creative side of my personality. In my opinion themes make any reason to celebrate and everyday life more fun.

Even if you think themes are “extra,” this month most people succumb to the tradition, or pressure, and soak up the ever present, universal theme and language…LOVE. Stores stock the shelves with endless displays of affection. Cards, flowers, candy, clothing, and if you’re really lucky, some gold and diamonds may find their way to you too. Or if you have the same view of Valentine’s Day as I do, I forgo the gifts and try to show the ones I love how I feel through action. Either way, the expression of love exudes from the word “February” and this theme seems to make the world a happier place for a month.

On the topic of themes, at SDPA the theme of the month is ACTION. The new year is in full swing, and the leaders and staff have finalized goals for the remainder of the leadership year. Now, my job is to lead our team in action mode. There are less than five months remaining on my presidency. Although our organization has already accomplished so much, there is still much more I want to see us achieve before my time as your president comes to an end.

Action requires planning. Board of Directors and committees have been hard at work to put into place sound plans for the goals we have set to better our organization, offer you the best education and tools needed to improve your practice as a DermPA, and increase the visibility of our profession. Those plans are now underway, and we are taking action on numerous projects.

This month we begin working on implementing the name change under the direction of AAPA. Though an exciting task, this process will take time and I will keep you updated as progress is made. We also begin working more intimately with patient advocacy groups in an effort to improve patient care and outcomes, as well as join forces with them in regard to legislation that makes caring for our patients easier. JDPA is actively working toward becoming indexed and that goal is closer than ever. I hope to have news on this labor of love soon. Our CME team is pulling out all the stops and putting the final touches on SDPA Boston and Nashville, both set to be as big of a success as Miami. Legislatively, we are actively reviewing the Federal Trade Commission’s ban on non-compete agreements. This could be a monumental piece of legislation for millions of people, PAs included, if approved.

The above are just a few of the projects our organization is working on for you. The theme “action” will continue throughout the coming months as we work to bring our organization’s vision to life.  As I challenge our leaders and staff, I also challenge you to adopt “action” as your theme for the month or even remainder of the year. Whether professionally or personally, action is the pathway to reaching goals and making change.

I’ll leave you with one of my favorite quotes by Nelson Mandela: “Action without vision is only passing time; Vision without action is merely daydreaming; But vision with action can change the world.”

 

Yours Truly,

 

Lauren Miller, MPAS, PA-C

President, SDPA Board of Directors