Vital Times 2020 - 6

The President's Page
Jeffrey Poage, MD | CSA President

A Year of Challenges
It has truly been an honor
to serve as your CSA
President since our historic
" virtual " House of Delegates
last June. The journey
since then has been very
rewarding yet dotted by
much frustration due to the
pandemic. As I write this piece, we mark the one-year
anniversary of the first " documented " Covid case in
the country. As the NEJM reported:
On January 19, 2020, a 35-year-old man
presented to an urgent care clinic in
Snohomish County, Washington, with a
4-day history of cough and subjective fever.
On checking into the clinic, the patient put
on a mask in the waiting room. After waiting
approximately 20 minutes, he was taken
into an examination room and underwent
evaluation by a provider. He disclosed that
he had returned to Washington State on
January 15 after traveling to visit family in
Wuhan, China. The patient stated that he
had seen a health alert from the U.S. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
about the novel coronavirus outbreak in
China and, because of his symptoms and
recent travel, decided to see a health
care provider.
Seems so long ago! For me, time seemed to slow
down in 2020, at least until we got to the elections
and holiday season. I was privileged to engage with
so many CSA members on " Zoom " during these
slow-motion months. I heard stories of furloughed

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CSA Vital Times

doctors and staff as elective surgery was suspended
for a while. Many of our colleagues were repurposed
to help in ICUs and elsewhere. Some even volunteered
to work in New York during the earliest and deadliest
weeks of this awful pandemic. Our own Sunny Jha,
MD, Chair of our Legislative Affairs Committee,
helped bring a shuttered LA hospital back to life
in preparation for the initial Covid surge. CSA held
two calls in January with our District and Forum
leaders from around the State. Southern California in
particular was severely impacted by the pandemic in
recent weeks. We heard about an oxygen shortage, an
overwhelmed 911 system, and minimal ICU capacity
with some patients receiving care in hallways. In
recent days we have seen encouraging signs we
may be headed in a more positive direction. Yet with
restrictions for California being lifted once again, we
remain vigilant for another uptick in cases. So it goes
as we wait for more vaccines to go into arms in a race
against mutating strains of a crafty and resourceful
virus. This pandemic has certainly unmasked (no
pun intended) many weaknesses in our public
health system - none more important than those
surrounding vaccine distribution. We hope and expect
our healthcare system, public and private, to learn and
become stronger as we emerge from the pandemic
fog. I am inspired by so many within our society who
are leading positive change and innovation in their
departments, hospitals, and communities.
An Engaged Society
A record number of CSA members applied to serve
on our committees and task forces this year. I believe
this is in part due to the restructuring our society
underwent in 2018 to create better representation via



Vital Times 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Vital Times 2020

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https://www.nxtbook.com/allen/csvt/vital-times-2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/allen/csvt/vital-times-2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/allen/csvt/2020
https://www.nxtbook.com/allen/csvt/2019
https://www.nxtbook.com/allen/csvt/2018
https://www.nxtbook.com/allen/csvt/2017
https://www.nxtbook.com/allen/csvt/2016
https://www.nxtbook.com/allen/csvt/2015
https://www.nxtbook.com/allen/csvt/2014
https://www.nxtbookmedia.com