UDOH - The UDOH Immunization Program understands the staffing shortages Utah's providers are facing. One consideration: If all of our enrolled physician offices could commit to administering five doses a day, five days a week, that would be equal to one high volume site. Every provider has an opportunity to do their part! The Immunization Program, thanks to coordination by local health departments, are able to get as little or as much vaccine needed to a provider office. Plus, one order can be utilized to administer the first and second dose since pediatric Pfizer vaccine can be stored in the fridge for up to 10 weeks. If you are enrolled as a provider, you will be able to start transfer requests for doses in the next few weeks. 

AAFP - Join AAFP President Sterling Ransone, M.D., and representatives from the American Academy of Pediatrics and the White House at 6 p.m. MT on Nov. 3 for an hour-long virtual conversation, “Addressing the Use of COVID-19 Vaccines in Children.” Tune in to learn about the vaccine approval process, how family physicians can prepare to administer the vaccines, resources like the action checklist for pediatric COVID-19 vaccinations and much more.

KTVX In Focus: Breast Cancer Awareness Month

UAFP member, Dr. Richard Ferguson (center), and President of Black Physicians of Utah

KTVX - Black Physicians of Utah report that Black women have the highest breast cancer mortality of any U.S. racial or ethnic group. For comparison, Black women have a mortality rate for breast cancer that is 42 percent higher than White women. Black women are more likely to be diagnosed at advanced cancer stages, such as when there are larger tumors or when the cancer has spread to a lymph node. Some of the barriers and challenges for this ethnic group are attributed to lack of health insurance, lack of access to care, worries about cost, and culture/language barriers. Learn more...

Utah hospitals ask for wheelchair, walker, crutches donations amid shortage

Salt Lake Tribune - Health officials in a news conference Monday urged Utahns to donate metal crutches and other mobility-assist equipment as area medical centers face a supply shortage.

Glen Beeby, a spokesperson for Intermountain Healthcare, asked Utahns to search their closets, attics and garages for such unused equipment ahead of November and December, the busiest time of year for orthopedic surgeries.

Donation drives will be held at nine medical centers throughout the state this Saturday as well as on Saturday, Nov. 6, and Saturday, Nov. 13, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. each day. A full list of the centers receiving donations is available at leanonutah.com.

Intersectionality in Health Education & Care

Join University of Utah Health for MEDiversity week starting today and running through Nov. 5. The mission of MEDiversity Week is to highlight the equity, diversity, and inclusion work within U Health; while addressing health care disparities and offering solutions for the training of our current and future providers. The week’s events will include presentations on the research and practice of our own U Health faculty to address access to care as well as workshops and discussions on how to continually advocate for equity and inclusion in our daily personal and professional lives. Learn more and register for events here. 

Pfizer Vaccines US Medical Affairs Training Sessions Available

Pfizer Vaccines US Medical Affairs will be hosting Immunization Site Training Sessions for All Providers on the Storage, Handling, & Administration for Current & Potential New Formulations of our COVID-19 vaccine (with their partner BioNTech). These sessions will be updated to reflect new information and changes that evolve.  Such updates will be identified at the start of each session and further explained during each presentation. Sign up here. 

Utah lawmaker is looking to toughen penalties on assaulting health care workers

Salt Lake Tribune - The man sitting in front of nurse practitioner Cara Wolf was demanding ivermectin, and when she turned him down, she watched as his eyebrows knit together and his chest puffed up with anger.

The patient who’d arrived in her Utah urgent care clinic hadn’t really wanted a coronavirus test in the first place, even though he was the perfect candidate: unvaccinated, sick and coughing.

Her heart dropped as he then shifted to asking for ivermectin. She told the man she’d risk losing her license for prescribing the drugs and refused to do it. The man erupted in rage, she said. Most of the diatribe is a blur to her, but Wolf said she does remember him calling her the vulgar c-word. Read more...

Study suggests inexpensive antidepressant fluvoxamine could help treat COVID-19

CBS News - A cheap antidepressant reduced the need for hospitalization among high-risk adults with COVID-19 in a study hunting for existing drugs that could be repurposed to treat coronavirus.

Researchers tested the pill used for depression and obsessive-compulsive disorder because it was known to reduce inflammation and looked promising in smaller studies.

They've shared the results with the U.S. National Institutes of Health, which publishes treatment guidelines, and they hope for a World Health Organization recommendation. Read more...

CME & Ski Schedule Now Available

WHEN: Friday, February 25 – Sunday, February 27, 2022

WHERE: DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel in Park City, UT

COST: Click here for a full list of registration prices.

Hike with a Doc - Southern Utah

We hope that you and your family will join us for a social event for family physicians in Southwest Utah on Saturday, November 13 at 11:00am. We are hosting a picnic in Ivins, UT for all UAFP members and medical students from Rocky Vista University-Southern Utah Campus and their families. Followed by a family-friendly hike in Snow Canyon State Park, Johnson Canyon. 

Enjoy lunch and snacks with other family physicians in the area and bring your family to enjoy Ivins City Park and Snow Canyon State Park on us! Lunch, snacks, and drinks will be provided as well as entrance to the park if you do not have an annual pass. 

UAFP Fall CME: Updates in Managing DM and Obesity

Up to 2 Hours of FREE Prescribed CME Credit Available

This T2DM program will familiarize physicians with the pathophysiology of CVD in T2DM, results of cardiovascular outcomes trials of antihyperglycemics, and recommendations from several societies regarding the use of these agents in patients with T2DM who have or are at risk for CVD. The Obesity activity will provide clinicians with a greater understanding of the disease of obesity, including its etiology and physiologic effects, and management strategies, including the efficacy and safety of anti-obesity medications and how and when to incorporate them into individualized management plans. Program and accreditation information available here

When: Thursday, November 18, 2021, 6:30pm – 8:45pm
Where: Online
Cost: Free!