Dear Colleague,

The Resident and Fellow Section (RFS) was created by the American Medical Association (AMA) in 1974 to advocate for residents and train young leaders. These 2 goals will be addressed with the recent election of our inaugural group of AMA-RFS sectional delegates.

At the 2006 RFS Interim Meeting, 22 residents were elected by the RFS assembly to serve as the inaugural group of sectional delegates and alternate delegates. All sectional delegates were nominated by their respective state or specialty society and will be seated in the AMA House of Delegates as full voting members at the AMA 2007 annual and interim meetings.

This is a tremendous opportunity. Each of these young doctors will participate fully in the AMA House of Delegates—helping to decide the policy and direction of our organization. The AMA House of Delegates meets twice yearly to debate resolutions proposed by state medical societies and specialty organizations. When a resolution is passed, it becomes the policy of the AMA and helps direct the actions of the organization.

Our sectional delegates will be instrumental in fulfilling the goals of the RFS—resident advocacy and leadership development. All residents will have a voice in their state medical society or specialty organization delegation; they can voice opinions on proposed resolutions and build support for matters pertaining to residents and fellows. As far as leadership development, these young doctors will serve on delegations with the brightest leaders, creating mentoring, networking, and teaching opportunities.

At the conclusion of the 1-year term, sectional delegates will be well versed in matters of medical education, medical liability reform, the problems of the uninsured, and other public health measures. In addition to becoming knowledgeable on these issues, they also will be part of the discussions of solutions.

The new sectional delegates will begin their term at the next AMA Annual Meeting, June 23-27, in Chicago. They will hit the ground running, as the AMA-RFS will present several proposed resolutions at this meeting, including the following examples.

The study of gender disparities related to physician salaries and professional development. Recent studies have shown that even when controlling for specialty choice and hours spent at work, women physicians earn less than their male counterparts. Furthermore, although unprecedented numbers of women are entering the field of medicine, there is a paucity of women in leadership. Women lag behind their male colleagues in promotions in academic centers; fewer women attain full professorships or administrative positions.

Proposed action: The RFS will ask that the AMA collaborate with other organizations to study gender disparities in physician salaries and professional development, and, with the results of this study, we hope to find measures that the AMA can take to eliminate these disparities.

Compensation of resident and fellow physicians’ time in orientation. Residents reported to the AMA-RFS that they were required to attend orientation sessions, yet were not compensated for this time. The Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) does not require residency programs to have orientation, but does have a set of “institutional requirements” that sets common standards for teaching institutions.

Proposed action: The RFS proposes that the AMA ask the ACGME to amend its “institutional requirements” so that institutions are required to compensate resident and fellow physicians for time spent in orientation.

Elimination of benefits waiting periods for resident and fellow physicians. Some teaching institutions do not provide benefits to residents and fellows beginning on the first day of employment. This can lead to prolonged periods of time without insurance, because coverage obtained as a medical student may expire one, two, or more months before beginning residency, and benefits waiting periods often have a substantial duration.

Proposed action: The RFS asks that the AMA coordinate with the ACGME and Liaison Committee on Medical Education to develop policy that ensures continuous hospital, health, and disability insurance coverage during a traditional transition from medical school to graduate medical education.

If you are interested in any of these issues, or in serving as a sectional delegate in the future, please contact the AMA-RFS. Please visit our website at www.ama-assn.org/ama/pub/category/15.html to meet the new sectional delegates.

Kimberly Ruscher, MD
Alternate Delegate
American Medical Association
Resident and Fellow Section

Suggested reading
The RFS policy digest, available at www.ama-assn.org/ama1/pub/upload/mm/16/2005_digestofactions.pdf

Schedule of upcoming AMA-RFS and AMA House of Delegates meetings, available at www.ama-assn.org/ama/pub/category/5653.html