Some of the links on this page will take you off the AMA Web site. The AMA is not responsible for the content of other Web sites.
Students appointed to AMA Councils and other organizations/bodies are asked to provide brief monthly reports on their activities. Please click on the Council or organization/body below to read the latest update.
If you have questions, please contact the MSS or the relevant Councilor or Representative at the e-mail address provided.
AMA Councils
Other Organizations/Bodies
AMA Councilor Updates
Council on Constitution and Bylaws (CC&B)
Trace Fender
Northeastern Ohio Universities College of Medicine
Update coming soon
Council on Ethical and Judicial Affairs (CEJA)
Kavita Shah
Jefferson Medical College
At its January 2008 meeting, CEJA discussed upcoming ethical reports as well as conducted business pertaining to its judicial function. Two reports in progress address key medical student issues - access to care and relationships with industry. As CEJA reviews, updates, and amends its current policy on health care as a right and determines new ethical policy stemming from that powerful statement, the AMA HOD will have in its hands landmark policy. We will need every MSS vote in the Big House to pass this important report. During the writing phase, we will be drawing from a variety of sources and encourage you to contribute your opinion. If you have questions or comments about the nature of this report, please contact me.
The second report will deal with medicine's relationship to industry including pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies. We will address issues such as patient care, research, advertising, and medical education at all three levels (undergraduate, graduate, and continuing). Current AMA policy on relationships to industry is outdated and incomplete and we hope to make pivotal changes given new circumstances that have arisen. Again, if you wish to contribute or learn more about this report, please contact me.
Other reports deal with surgeon's attendance during surgery, secret shopper patients, treating fellow medical students and housestaff, and physicians' personal proprietary information. For more information, comments, or suggestions feel free to contact me. I look forward to hearing from you.
Council on Legislation (COL)
Jessica Nguyen-Trong
University of Texas Southwestern Medical School
The AMA and AMA-MSS strive every day to achieve health care system reforms, in order to improve the environment in which we practice medicine and deliver care to patients, but your voice is crucial in this process. It has been a privilege to serve this year as your medical student member on the Council on Legislation (COL). This 14-member group reports directly to the Board of Trustees and reviews federal legislation to ensure consistency with AMA policy.
One of the legislative issues that has been particularly of interest to medical students and residents these past few months is the 20/220 rule, which allows residents to defer repayment of their loans based on economic hardship. With the support of the AMA Board of Trustees, the Council on Legislation, AMA Advocacy Staff, the MSS Governing Council, and the MSS Committee on Legislation and Advocacy (COLA), we have been working to reinstate the 20/220 rule in the Higher Education Act (HEA) reauthorization bills in Congress and through other advocacy efforts. Your support and voice do make a difference when you take the time to communicate personally to your legislators through various pathways, including Capwiz.
The Council on Legislation also makes recommendations on other issues, such as scope of practice, health information technology, Medicare physician reimbursements, medical liability reform, and SCHIP, among others. The resolutions that pass with your input in the MSS Assembly, and subsequently in the House of Delegates, play a role in guiding our decisions.
If you have any questions, would like to receive an update, or are trying to get more familiar with health care legislative issues, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Your involvement is what drives the MSS - "Together we are stronger."
Council on Long Range Planning and Development (CLRPD)
Justin Mahida
Ohio State University College of Medicine
Update coming soon
Council on Medical Education (CME)
Timothy Craft
University of Virginia School of Medicine
Update coming soon
Council on Medical Service (CMS)
Rachelle Klammer
University of Colorado School of Medicine
Update coming soon
Council on Science and Public Health (CSAPH)
Aaron Kithcart
Ohio State University College of Medicine
Update coming soon
Other updates
National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME) Advisory Committee for Medical School Programs
Alyce Belonis
Drexel University College of Medicine
I'm working with the NBME Advisory Committee on several issues. Last June, several stakeholders on the Advisory Committee thought the Step 2 CS score reports didn't provide enough valuable detail. So, we had a conference call at the end of January about providing students with more detailed feedback for Step 2 CS. A new score report has not been finalized. If you have opinions about Step 2 CS you'd like the NBME to know about, let me know and I will make sure your voice is heard. Additionally, the NBME updated its Web site at the beginning of February with more detailed information about the Comprehensive Review of the USMLE. As always, if you have any questions or comments about the NBME or USMLE process, please contact me.
Committee to Evaluate the USMLE Program (CEUP)
Peter Ragusa
University of Minnesota Medical School
In 2004, the USMLE began a process for a comprehensive review of the USMLE program. As a result, the Committee to Evaluate the USMLE Program (CEUP) was formed. Three major national medical student organizations, AAMC-OSR, AMSA and the AMA-MSS, were given one consensus appointment to represent all medical students – that appointee’s name is Peter Ragusa. After exhaustive information-gathering and deliberation phases, whereby CEUP received broad stakeholder input, CEUP is set to release its preliminary recommendations sometime in the next month. The recommendations will likely address issues such as the emphasis on basic sciences across all USMLE components, the provision of assessment information to allow state medical boards to make decisions at two points (entry into supervised and unsupervised practice) rather than the current three-Step process, and a redesign that better reflects the competencies critical to safe medical practice. During the remainder of 2008, various stakeholders will collaborate with the USMLE to discuss the recommendations. If you would like to express an opinion, you may register it at the USMLE Web site or by contacting Peter. Also, please visit the Comprehensive USMLE Review Web site for the most up-to-date information.
National Resident Matching Program (NRMP) Liaison
Sandeep Krishnan
University of Missouri - Kansas City
It has been my pleasure to serve at the leisure of the AMA-MSS in my capacity as a member of the NRMP Board of Directors. For years, the NRMP has been helping students match to residency programs across the country, and it makes me proud to serve as a voice to all AMA medical student members on the Board. The NRMP has two Board meetings yearly--one in October and one in May. I have learned a great deal about the match process through my appointment to the Board of the NRMP and the biggest piece of advice that I could give to all fourth year medical students going through the match process right now would be to read the entire Match Participation Agreement (MPA). As a member of the Board, I review violation cases of applicants who fail to honor their match commitments, and I can say from person experience that the costs of violating the MPA without good merit are very high.
The most exciting news that I have to share with you this year is that the Neurosurgery match will be leaving the San Francisco Matching Program and joining the NRMP match beginning 2009. I would also like to take this time to reiterate that if you have any questions or concerns about the NRMP or the match process, or just would like to voice your opinion, please feel free to e-mail or call me [(573)-746-6142] at any time with your input. After all, I am here to represent you and your ideas, so please do not hesitate to contact me. Thank you once again for this opportunity and I look forward to serving you in this capacity through the 2008-2009 school year.
American Medical Political Action Committee (AMPAC) Board of Directors
R. Jay Widmer
Texas A&M Health Sciences Center
Update coming soon
AMA Minority Affairs Consortium (MAC) Governing Council
Busayo Obayan
Boston University School of Medicine
Update coming soon
AMA Women Physicians Congress (WPC) Governing Council
Meltem Zeytinoglu
Indiana University School of Medicine
Update coming soon
Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME)
Cathleen (Katie) Greenzang
Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons
Update coming soon
AMA Foundation Board of Directors
Christopher Alvarez-Breckenridge
Ohio State University College of Medicine
Update coming soon
Advisory Committee on Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Issues (GLBT)
Jesse A. Levin
New York Medical College
Update coming soon
AMA Initiative to Transform Medical Education (ITME)
Peter Ragusa
University of Minnesota Medical School
Update coming soon
Content provided by: Medical Student Section