Vital Times 2014 - (Page 37)
Cautiously Optimistic:
CSA Finances in our
2014-15 Fiscal Year
By William Feaster, MD, MBA, CSA Treasurer
T
he "optimistic" part of the title refers to the fact
that we're coming off several years of a strongly
positive bottom line. This has enabled us to increase
our cash on hand and reserves. Our operating cash
and short and long-term reserves currently exceed
$2 million. That's very good news and allows us to
weather fluctuations in both revenue and expenses.
For example, during our 2013-14 fiscal year (July
1 to June 30), while revenue fell from decreased
membership, our expenses were also lower due
to staff turnover in the office. That enabled us to
post positive net revenue of $45,276 compared to a
budgeted deficit of ($87,037). The two years before
that led to even larger year-end net revenues. I have
to give kudos to our prior treasurers and other CSA
officers whose hard work led to this success!
The word "cautiously" in the title reflects the
fact that the CSA's revenue has become almost
exclusively dependent on member dues, and CSA
membership has recently suffered a slight decline.
Declining membership seems to be a trend for other
professional organizations as well, often attributed
to younger professionals not seeing the value of
membership and participation. Historically, our
CME activities have also substantially contributed
to our revenue. Like membership, conference
attendance has also recently declined despite the
increasing quality of our educational offerings. This
appears to be related to other, less expensive ways
I'm optimistic that we have plans in
place to respond to these challenges.
that professionals can now get CME credit, such as
on-line courses. Unfortunately, this creates a "double
whammy" on CSA revenues.
I'm optimistic that we have plans in place to respond
to these challenges. For example, potential and
former CSA members may be unaware that CSA
membership is required for ASA membership.
Enforcing that link has been problematic due to
membership cycles not being synchronized. We are
working to change that in the future by potentially
combining CSA and ASA membership billing, as
other states are doing.
We are working with our public relations consultants
to find better ways to communicate the real value
of CSA and ASA membership to your practice. For
example, if you are a member and reading this, your
hard-earned money that went to CSA dues helped
defeat Proposition 46, one of the biggest threats to
physicians in recent years. If you know colleagues
who aren't members of the CSA, they should thank
you for helping us succeed in this fight and they
should follow your lead in joining the CSA. We'll
need their help for the next battle, as new challenges
arise almost daily.
(continued)
Annual Publication 2014 | 37
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Vital Times 2014
AND NOW, A WORD FROM THE EDITOR
PRESIDENT’S PAGE
ON YOUR BEHALF: CSA Fights and Wins in 2014
ADAPT AND PROSPER: A Guide to Survival
POLITICS AND MEDICATION SAFETY: The CSA 2014 Annual Anesthesia Meeting
DR. CSA GOES TO WASHINGTON
CALIFORNIA ANESTHESIA RESIDENCY IN 2014
A NEW YEAR AND NEW LEADERSHIP IN THE CSA
CAUTIOUSLY OPTIMISTIC – CSA FINANCES IN OUR 2014-15 FISCAL YEAR
THE ASA ANNUAL BOARD OF DIRECTORS’ MEETING: Building for the Future
ANESTHESIOLOGY™ 2014
CONSOLIDATION IN THE HEALTHCARE MARKETPLACE: What’s in your Future?
IF I COULD SPEAK
PEERING OVER THE ETHER SCREEN: Germs and the Pseudoscience of Quality Improvement
THE ETHICAL CONSULTANT: Perioperative ‘Do Not Resuscitate’ Orders
THE VALUE OF CSA MEMBERSHIP
UPCOMING MEETINGS
MY WEEK ON HAWAII'S BIG ISLAND
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