President’s Message
continued from page 1
The devastating impact was not limited to physicians in private practices alone. Large hospital systems were also forced to lay off hundreds of staff including doctors. As a procedural based specialty, gastroenterology has likely been impacted more than non-procedural based specialties simply due to the fact that a large portion of revenue is usually derived from endoscopic procedures which had abruptly declined. Healthcare systems and large practices may have the capital to sustain viability for a period of time, but there comes a point that even these entities will collapse under the financial strain. Many small practices have been hit the hardest since they may not have the reserves or resources to keep the business running. Fortunately, there were some government programs to help small businesses and were utilized by many of these practices. The PSG Practice Management team, chaired by past PSG President, Dr. McKibbin, had done a valuable job keeping abreast of all the changes that were impacting practices and worked hard to provide guidance to our members during this pandemic. In the past few weeks, we are now seeing a gradual reopening of practices and endoscopy centers
with the goal of doing this in a safe manner. The mood has also changed and seems more optimistic. However, we must be cautious and not be overzealous in trying to reach our pre-pandemic status too quickly. A terrible thing would be for another outbreak leading to further devastation. As a result of the uncertainty of this pandemic and our goal to keep our members and staff safe, the PSG Board has decided to not go forward with our Annual Scientific Meeting as initially scheduled in September 2020. This year’s course director, Jennifer Maranki, MD from Hershey Medical Center, had planned an exciting lineup planned with thought leaders throughout the state. It was a difficult decision to not have the Annual Meeting which has been a fall tradition for almost forty years. There was only one other time in PSG history that our Annual Meeting had to be cancelled and that was in 2001 in light of the horrific September 11th terrorist attacks. Although disappointing, we are optimistic and will plan to have the conference in 2021 with Dr. Maranki as Course Director. Although the COVID-19 pandemic has created havoc in our lives and
our practices, our experiences during this time were not all negative. For many of us, it has given us time for reflection and appreciation for relationships and to look at life from a renewed perspective. As doctors, we are privileged to be entrusted with patients’ health which is the most valuable thing one can have. This pandemic has strengthened our appreciation for the profession that we have chosen.
At PSG, we are grateful to be on your side and appreciate all of your hard work. If you are already a member, we thank you for your continued support. If you are not a member, please consider joining so we can continue to support the interest of our specialty and our patients. Together, I am confident that we will get through this storm with renewed passion. Respectfully,
Ravi Ghanta, MD President Pennsylvania Society of Gastroenterology
2
