I am finishing up two days of a quarterly meeting in Sacramento on the Medicsl Board of California. I have been reappointed for another four years by the Senate Rules Committee. I serve as a public (non physician) member. There are 15 on the board. Eight are
Physicians. Seven are public members. While there is not a slot for other health care professionals, I am the first and only registered Nurse on this board and any other Medical Board in the US.
The Board licenses and disciplines the over 130,000 MDs. We also oversee physician assistants, licensed midwives (non nurse midwives),lens and glasses dispensers, and a new category of polysomnographers-professionals who test for sleep apnea. I currently serve on the Executive board as secretary. I chair the committee on physician supervision and have been working on regulations to deal with the legislation on how physicians should supervise licensed staff in doing laser or light pulse therapies for cosmetic purposes.
Between meetings all board members must review numerous cases on line and render a vote on proposed discipline being considered for physicians who have broken the law.
As part of my health care administration classes I teach at CSULB, I teach about the board and how consumers need to be aware of its functions.
I honored to serve on this board and look forward to my next 4 years.
