so far it seems to be o k James W. Mold wrote: > > Sorry to have been out of touch for so long. Here's an update on what has > happended of importance since our last Board meeting: > 1. The Board of Directors of the Family Health Foundation, a 501(c)3 > incorporated,charitable organization affiliated with the Oklahoma Academy of > Family Physicians has agreed to accept OKPRN (the practice-based > resource/research network) within it. Bylaws, etc. have yet to be rewritten > to reflect this change. Hopefully, this organizational change will give > OKPRN greater financial flexibility regarding both contributions and > expenditures. OKPRN will then contract with the Oklahoma Center for Family > Medicine Research for the services required to maintain and grow the network > and to design and carry out projects. Dr. Paul Preslar has expressed an > interest in taking over directorship of OKPRN at some point if funding could > be made available to cover his time/effort. The OAFP Board of Directors had > no problems with allowing non-OAFP members to join OKPRN. (They indicated > that such a change would not affect their willingness to continue to support > the network.) I have had very little success in recruiting Native American > clinics into the network though I have made a number of contacts and visits. > However, a number of other practitiers have recently joined. > 2. For now at least, it seems prudent to keep the Center as a discreet unit > within the Departments of Family and Preventive Medicine in OKC and the > Department of Family Medicine in Tulsa. I anticipate that we will > eventually (as funding permits) need to have some additional staff dedicated > to Center activities (budget management, promotions/contracts, and grant > writing). I have chosen not to approach the Dean or Provost about making > OCFMR a formal/recognized center within the OUHSC. There hasn't been a > pressing need to so. The main reason to do so would be to see if we could > negotiate for a larger share of indirect grant funds. I don't know how > likely that would be to happen, and we might just stir up trouble. > 3. As I work on a 5-year business plan for the Center, it seems to me that > one of our most stable sources of ongoing external support is probably going > to come from contracts. We already have contractual arrangements with the > State Department of Health, the Oklahoma Foundation for Medical Quality, and > the Oklahoma State Medical Association. We anticipate a contract with the > Health Care Authority beginning in July. A possibility exists for contracts > with the University Physicians Medical Group. > 4. We have not yet heard from the NIMH regarding our $2.7 million proposal > to study B-12 deficiency screening in the elderly. I anticipate some news > by mid July at the latest. If that grant is not funded, we will have to > regroup and seriously look at how we are going to keep the OKLAHOMA Studies > cohort going. > 5. I am trying to get a formal agreement drawn up between the Center and the > Next Century Group, the technology firm that is helping us to develop the > palm computer prevention application. They are interested in an ongoing > relationship and further development and eventual marketing of the product. > I have met with the OUHSC attorneys, and they have provided a generic > contractual form that NCG is reviewing. > 6. We now have PEAs in 11 practices and se have enlisted 13 sites in the > palm immunization project. > 7. The night sweats study has been completed and a manuscript is being > prepared for submission to JAMA. The HEDIS diabetes study has been > completed and a manuscript will be prepared. Data from the first year of the > OKLAHOMA Studies is being analyzed by several different research teams. > > I don't think we need to schedule another Board meeting this summer. If you > disagree, please let me know and we will schedule one. I suggest we meet > again formally in September. > What about Tuesday, Sept 4 from 4-6 pm? > > James W. Mold, MD, MPH > Director, OK Center for Family Medicine Research > 405-630-2564 (pager)