Shaping the Future Campaign

I regard the Academy as my “professional home.” As a longtime AAHPM member, I’ve seen the Academy shape, enhance, and advance the field of hospice and palliative care and fully support its membership. The Shaping the Future campaign is no different; the funds raised will go toward programs that members themselves have requested, be it advocacy, workforce development, or education—or all three areas.

The campaign is a way to enhance the reach and depth of what the Academy can do, and be responsive to what members say is important to them and the field. Members tell us that there still a lot to be done in terms of advocacy to ensure that everybody who has a serious illness has access to high-quality palliative care. The ways to do that are to have more well-trained palliative care providers, be accessible and available to people who need care, have the reimbursement mechanisms to make it fiscally viable, and have the evidence to inform practice.

I urge all members to become actively engaged in the campaign. Every gift will make a difference.

Visit aahpm.org and click “Donate Now” on the lower left corner of the home page to make your donation today.

Jean Kutner, MD MSPH FAAHPM, of the University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO, is a current member of the AAHPM Board of Directors and Executive Committee, and will be President-Elect following the 2013 Annual Assembly.

Janet Bull, MD FAAHPM, chief medical officer, Four Seasons in Flat Rock, NC, fully trusts Academy leadership to invest her general contribution to the Shaping the Future Campaign  wisely, no matter the area—education, advocacy, or workforce development.

“The Academy has done a fabulous job in terms of lending support to education and leadership to our field,” says the avid AAHPM volunteer who serves as a new board member, chairs the Research Committee, and serves as a member of the Campaign Committee. “I feel that my financial gift will yield a great return on investment,” she says.

“The Academy has several objectives moving forward,” Dr. Bull adds. “With all the changes going on in healthcare reform—from decreased Medicare reimbursement, workforce shortage issues, and public misconceptions around end-of-life care—we need a strong voice for our membership. This includes advocacy in policy making, increased funding for fellowship programs, and education in the public domain about hospice and palliative care.”

Dr. Bull encourages all AAHPM members to become actively involved in the Academy and its educational programs. By doing so, they, too, will learn that their time and contributions are well spent.  Go to www.aahpm.org and click “Donate Now” on the lower left corner of the home page to make your donation today.