Upcoming Webinars
Continuing professional development is the process of lifelong learning in
which physicians acquire, through formal and informal activities, the
medical and nonmedical competencies they need to improve their ability to
practice medicine and provide effective patient care. Engaging in
continuing professional development is a professional obligation and also
a prerequisite for enhancing the quality of health care. The WSMA offers
continuing professional development as part of our commitment to
supporting physicians and physician assistants on their lifelong learning
journey. Questions? Contact Brendan Cox at
brendan@wsma.org or 206.956.3625.
Advocacy as Wellness: Navigating the Path to Reform and Resilience
Monday, May 12, 2025, noon-1 p.m.
The frightening prevalence of physician suicide and physician and clinician burnout has spurred targeted interventions and reforms that seek to eliminate the systemic barriers to mental health care that physicians and practitioners face. From licensing and credentialing reforms to confidential peer support and wellness programs, from providing mental and behavioral health training and beyond, advocates are uniting behind multi-pronged initiatives to ensure health professionals feel secure in seeking mental health support when they need it.
Join us on Monday, May 12, for the next Physician and Practitioner Wellness webinar where we’ll catch up on national and local reform efforts. Presenters include Chris Bundy, MD, chief medical officer of the Federation of State Physician Health Programs and executive medical director of the Washington Physicians Health Program, and Stef Simmons, MD, chief medical officer at the Dr. Lorna Breen Heroes’ Foundation.
During the webinar, Dr. Simmons will dive into national targets such as licensing and credentialing reform, the Dr. Lorna Breen Health Care Provider Protection Act, and the new “Health Workers Have the Right, Too” mental health care initiative. Then, Dr. Bundy will shift the focus to local reform efforts, highlighting the roles of Washington Medical Commission, the University of Washington, the Washington Practitioner Application, Physicians Insurance, and others, and discussing the path forward.
Dr. Simmons and Dr. Bundy will reflect on how to be successful in advocacy work: How can we navigate challenges, and how can we view advocacy itself as a form of wellness? They’ll explore how engaging in advocacy promotes our own wellbeing and encourage participants to share their advocacy stories and discuss potential projects they’d like to start but aren’t sure how to approach.
This interactive discussion will leave you inspired to take meaningful steps toward advocacy, wellness, and professional growth. The lunchtime session is open to all.
This activity has been approved for AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™.
Speakers
Chris Bundy, MD, MPH
Dr. Bundy serves as the executive medical director of the Washington Physicians Health Program and chief medical officer of the Federation of State Physician Health Programs. Board-certified in adult and geriatric psychiatry as well as addiction medicine, he holds faculty appointments as a clinical associate professor of psychiatry at both the University of Washington School of Medicine and the Washington State University Elson S. Floyd College of Medicine.
Stefanie Simmons, MD
Stefanie Simmons, MD is the chief medical officer at the Dr. Lorna Breen Heroes’ Foundation and a board-certified emergency medicine physician. She was the primary advisor to NIOSH for the Impact WellbeingTM guide for healthcare leaders, leads multi-state programs to improve the operational environment of care and remove barriers to mental health care, and serves as a national thought leader in healthcare worker well-being. Stefanie served as the vice president of patient and clinician experience for Envision more than seven years, serving 26,000 physicians and advanced practice providers with a focus on professional well-being, including translational research and programs designed to bring well-being best practices to clinical environments. She served as lead clinical faculty for the Clinician Experience Project Wellbeing program.
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