NCMB has a long tradition of serving the public and the medical profession at the national level through participation in the Federation of State Medical Boards. FSMB is a national nonprofit organization representing all medical boards within the United States and its territories that license and discipline allopathic and osteopathic physicians and, in some jurisdictions, other health care professionals. FSMB’s annual meeting always provides numerous opportunities for NCMB to participate in national conversations relevant in medical regulation, patient safety and excellence in medical practice. This year’s meeting, held in Forth Worth, was no exception. Here are some highlights:
Current, former NCMB members selected for leadership roles
Cheryl Walker-McGill, MD, who served as a Board Member with NCMB from 2011-2018, was selected as Chair-elect of the FSMB Board during the FSMB Annual Meeting. Dr. Walker-McGill, of Charlotte, will assume the role of Chair in April 2020. Congratulations Dr. Walker-McGill!
In addition, current NCMB Public Member Shawn P. Parker, JD, MPA, won election to his first full term on the FSMB Board of Directors. Mr. Parker, who lives in Raleigh, was elected to a partial term on the FSMB Board in April 2018 and was obliged to run again this year.
Mr. Parker was appointed to NCMB in 2016. He practices law at Smith Anderson in Raleigh, where he is a member of the Health Care team, advising clients on health care policy, legislative advocacy, executive strategy, and regulatory guidance concerning business planning of organized medicine. Previously, Mr. Parker served as a managing partner for a public policy consulting firm working with clients in government agencies and the private sector. He has also worked for the NC General Assembly, most recently as a senior staff attorney.
NCMB policy contributions: medical board handling of sexual assault
One of the most compelling reasons for NCMB to participate in the FSMB’s annual meeting is the opportunity to participate in education sessions and panel discussions on important topics affecting medical regulation or the practice of medicine. This year, NCMB contributed to the national discussion regarding medical board handling of sexual assault cases by participating on a panel discussion, Sexual Boundary Violations: What State Medical Boards Need to Know. Many state medical boards are actively questioning how well they are positioned to address sexual assault by licensees in the wake of the case of Dr. Larry Nassar. NCMB Deputy General Counsel Brian Blankenship represented the Board on the FSMB panel, sharing information about steps NCMB has made to improve its processes. For example, since 2017, Board Members, Board investigators and members of NCMB’s Legal Department have completed training on the effects of trauma on the brain.
In addition, NCMB supports victims of sexual assault through its Victim Services Program, which connects individuals who report professional sexual misconduct by a licensed physician or PA with available assistance and resources in their part of the state. NCMB’s program was inspired by similar services offered to sexual assault victims by law enforcement, district attorney’s offices and the U.S. military. NCMB’s Victim Services Coordinator – a Board paralegal who took on the role as an additional responsibility – assists victims of trauma across the state, regardless of the outcome of the case against the licensed physician or PA, or whether an enforcement case is active. The Board shared information about this innovative program with other medical regulators at the 2019 FSMB annual meeting through a poster presentation displayed during the conference.
Learn more about the Victim Services Program at
www.ncmedboard.org/VictimServices.
