PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE

Day One

I'm so excited to be sworn in as the new SSVMS President.

My colleagues have been asking me where I'll focus. There's no doubt: our profession needs to have a dedicated focus on physician wellness and health equity.

SSVMS has been committed to providing resources to address the unique traumas that physicians have endured throughout our careers. The Joy of Medicine program helps reconnect us to the core of why we chose this profession. Our confidential behavioral health resources and resiliency counseling provides another avenue for caring for our physicians. But one physician suicide is one too many—and we have more to do more until there are none.

SSVMS has been interested in finding ways to promote health equity in our communities, having started our very own Health Equity Committee a couple of years ago. I look forward to expanding the role of the committee and integrating discussions of equity into our daily medical practices. Sacramento, one of the most diverse cities in the country, has continued to see social determinants of health disproportionately affect people of color, LGBTQ+ patients, and patients with disabilities, especially since the COVID-19 pandemic began.

We'll fight for quality healthcare policy at the legislative and regulatory levels. We'll connect our physicians and practices to the management resources they need to thrive. We will advocate for physician wellness. We'll help our patients get the care they need.

And we'll strive to improve health outcomes in our most vulnerable populations.

Thank you for your trust - I look forward to seeing you soon!

J. Bianca Roberts, MD

SSVMS President