the circumstances, that just would not have
been the right thing to do. But since supplies
are limited, AMS efforts have been focused only
on medical clinics. So, if the clinic is staffed by
member or non-member physicians or nurse
practitioners, they have been provided PPE.
There are currently 455 clinics with requests.
To date, there have been four major
shipments of PPE totaling more than 600,000
pieces. With each shipment, our delivery
methods have evolved. The Arkansas
Department of Emergency Management has
been our primary partner in this effort. They
agreed to mail out the first shipment for AMS.
When round two came in, we took to the road.
After renting three 16’ Penske trucks, we drove
to Warren, Arkadelphia, Alma, Springdale,
Jonesboro and Mountain Home – basically
areas around the state where clinic staff could
drive 1.5 hours or less to get to us. Clinics were
alerted by email and all they had to do was
show up. Over a week’s time, we dispersed it
all. By the third round, which was smaller at
50-60,000 pieces, we were emailing clinics and
giving them the option to either pick it up or
pay for postage and have us mail it to them. For
many clinics, paying for the postage was well
worth it to avoid spending 1.5 hours each way
to pick up the supplies.
Hopefully, the supply of PPE will catch up
with the demand. But for now, if the state keeps
bringing it in, AMS will keep distributing it.
Thank you, AMS Staff
& Board of Trustees
Your AMS staff – I cannot brag on them
enough for what they have accomplished over
the past couple of months. It is a large-scale
effort to sort, pack, and distribute the PPE.
Most of the staff has been able to work in the
office with two, sometimes three, working
remotely. Fortunately, the AMS office is laid
out in a way that we are not on top of each
other, so it is easy to keep some distance. Then
keeping the COVID-19 Update relevant to AMS
members is sometimes a challenge. The intent
was to make that a weekly update, but for most
of the time, it has been necessary to push one
out daily.
It seems inappropriate to celebrate and
give each other a pat on the back during a time
like this, but at the same time, I’m extremely
proud of how the Society – its elected
physicians, members, and staff – has stepped
up to meet this challenge. In the face of a
pandemic that is taking lives away from all of
us, the Society has been and continues to work
tirelessly to address the needs of physicians
across the state.
Thank You to Health Care Workers
The ones we really should be bragging on,
however, are the individual physicians and
other health care workers of our state. The
Arkansas Medical Society is so grateful to those
working the front lines. In a public service
announcement that aired on television and
social media outlets statewide, the AMS Board
of Trustees expressed this sentiment: “They
touch lives. Listen to hearts. They’re risking
their health to preserve ours. To everyone who
works in our state’s clinics and hospitals, thank
you doesn’t say enough. Then again, it says
everything.”
Medical Board
Legal Issues?
Call
Pharmacist/Attorney
Darren O’Quinn
1-800-455-0581
www.DarrenOQuinn.com
UPDATE....your member profile so you
won't miss out on any important
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You can update easily at ARKMED.org.
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Volume 117 • Number 1 JULY 2020 • 5