By Richard S. Pieters, MD MEd FACR
I am an AMA member, delegate and council member. 
I originally joined the American Medical Association (AMA) because, like it or not, the politicians in Washington consider the AMA the voice of American physicians. All of the specialty societies can speak for their specialty, but only the AMA speaks for the broad interests of us all. I believe that organized medicine offers the only opportunity to influence our legislators for the good of our profession and our patients, and I consider advocacy to be a professional obligation. As an active member of the Massachusetts Medical Society House of Delegates, I came to recognize the importance of the policymaking function of the House and the important role each delegate plays in the advocacy role of the Society in our state. So, I decided I wanted to be just as involved nationally.
As a Hospice and Palliative Medicine physician, I know that our specialty faces unique regulatory and legislative concerns and a severe workforce issue. AAHPM — through the Academy’s delegate, Dr. Chad Kollas — helped me to achieve election to the AMA Council on Medical Education last June. As a result, I have the ear of the American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS), the organization that will have to address the workforce problem. Having become board certified in HPM mid-career, I am anxious to ensure that ABMS understands and works to address the challenges associated with mid-career training and board certification. I can assure you that, while they do not always agree with us, they do listen to the collective voice of the AMA Council on Medical Education.
Today, AAHPM is fighting to retain its seat in the AMA House of Delegates and needs to increase the number of Academy members who are members of the AMA to do so. I hope you will join or renew by April 1 and help ensure our continued representation. As a member of the AMA House of Delegates, I have found that it functions as a true democracy, which means policy is set by a majority vote of those present. If it is important to you that the issues of the hospice and palliative care community are represented on the national stage, then you need to assure that our voice continues to be heard on the floor of the AMA House.
Dr. Rick Pieters is a radiation oncologist at UMass Memorial Medical Center. An AAHPM member, Pieters serves as a delegate to the AMA from the Massachusetts Medical Society and as a member of the AMA Council on Medical Education.
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AAHPM Practicing Physician Members: Help AAHPM save its seat in the AMA!
Go to ama-assn.org and join by April 1 to ensure AAHPM meets the requirements for representation in the AMA. Already an AMA member? Don’t forget to renew your membership by April 1!