The NAMDRC meeting and educational conference is a most informative, productive, and fun professional gathering. The 38th annual meeting awaits you in Scottsdale, Arizona, March 12-14, 2015. The NAMDRC conference is unique in several important ways. The educational venue is small enough to allow personal interactions with world-class experts. It is tailor-made to enhance your clinical acumen, improve the productivity of your practice, and inform you of regulatory and legislative issues that have direct effects on your patients’ access to care and on your practice’s bottom line. The conference’s setting is magnificent, and there are plenty of opportunities for you and your guest to have fun at the meeting and to enjoy the beauty of this premier destination in the Southwest (at a time of year when you might enjoy a little thawing). Finally, it is a great chance to see the NAMDRC organization in action. NAMDRC, the National Association for the Medical Direction of Respiratory Care, interests extend far beyond respiratory care departments. Formed by the American College of Chest Physicians, the American Thoracic Society, and the American Society of Anesthesiologists in the mid-1970s, NAMDRC is an agile group of thought leaders from academic and private practice who can respond quickly to legislative and regulatory matters unique to pulmonary, critical care, and sleep medicine. For over 3 decades, it has earned a reputation for insightful and decisive leadership and has represented our profession through proactive, direct contact with health policymakers on Capitol Hill and at federal regulatory agencies. The origin of our actions and the heart of our organization is the practicing physician.
Our educational conference is eclectic and all the sessions are plenary. Expert speakers interact personally with the audience, and we encourage real-time audience participation through the conference’s audience response system. The program is productive enough to offer up to 13.5 AMA PRA Category 1 credits™ but concise enough to be done by midday. You and your guest will have the afternoon and evening to enjoy the beauty of the Scottsdale/Phoenix area at your leisure.
Another unique feature of the NAMDRC conference is the absence of an exhibit hall. NAMDRC’s corporate partners actually support that aspect of the conference, since it affords them the opportunity to mingle with registrants in a more casual setting. Without the sales atmosphere (and expense) associated with an exhibit hall, partners tell NAMDRC that our approach is unique simply because that casual atmosphere has fostered many long-term relationships for both physicians attending the conference and corporate representatives.
The program itself is filled with nationally recognized speakers committed to NAMDRC’s educational goals. The topics include clinical updates, practice management advice, and health policy issues important to pulmonary, critical care, and sleep medicine. This year’s theme is on individualization of patient care: the characteristics among patients with similar disorders that might warrant different approaches to diagnosis or therapies. Examples include the following:
• COPD Phenotypes
Robert Benzo, MD, Director Mindful Breathing Laboratory, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN
• Patients in Whom CPAP and Bi-Level Devices Might Reduce Hospital Readmissions
Sairam Parthasarathy, MD, University of Arizona College of Medicine, Tucson, AZ
• The Financial Implications of the Affordable Care Act – LUNCHEON
Don Moran, President, The Moran Company, Arlington, VA
• Selection of Respiratory Failure Patients for Acute Application of ECMO, ECCOR, etc.
J. Christopher Farmer, MD, FCCP, Professor of Medicine and Chair of Critical Care Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Scottsdale, AZ
• Coding Update 2015
Alan Plummer, MD, FCCP{, Professor of Medicine, Emory University Medical Center, Atlanta, GA
• Legislative & Regulatory Issues
Phillip Porte, Executive Director, NAMDRC, Vienna VA
Please visit the NAMDRC website to download the program at www.namdrc.org/pubs/NAMDRC_2015_BROCHURE.pdf. The brochure will give you conference and membership information, as well as hotel rates and more. Physicians who join NAMDRC after July 1, 2014, and have never attended a NAMDRC conference, enjoy complimentary conference registration, up to a $425 value. For additional information, contact NAMDRC at 703/752-4359.
Dr. Morris is Professor of Medicine and Clinical Service Chief, Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine,University of California, San Diego School of Medicine; and NAMDRC President-Elect and Program Chairperson. Mr. Porte is NAMDRC Executive Director.