Contributors to This Issue

Vanessa Walker, DO
In her first message as SSVMS President, Dr. Walker says there are many opportunities to extend our advocacy to the benefit of patients and physicians. Her goal for 2024 is to empower physicians and strengthen our collaborative voice.
Aileen Wetzel
Volunteerism is one of the big reasons SSVMS can have such an impact on shaping the practice of medicine and making a difference in the community. There are several opportunities for you to volunteer in ways that fit your interests and time restrictions.
Caroline Giroux, MD
January is a time when new doors open but the days are dreary. Dr. Giroux says she struggles with the first month of the year but touts the importance of awareness which, like the new year, to begin a process of rebirth and provide a new outlook on what life has to offer.
Thomas N. Atkins, MD
Dr. Atkins, the former lead physician for EHR implementation for several years in Sutter Medical Group, explains why the business strategy used by electronic health records vendors has been a failure: they didn't — and don't — listen to clinicians who are their customers.
Estelle Dolan, MD
Dr. Dolan, the inaugural recipient of the Mark and Tanya Schaal Prose and Poetry in Psychotherapy Award at UC Davis, explains how the written word can be a powerful tool for helping patients and it can also heal some of the trauma that comes with practicing medicine, too.
Ken Smith, Managing Editor
A recent trip to Portugal was an eye-opening, but money-saving, experience that gave Ken new perspective on the impact of high drug prices on patients, physicians and our health care system. It raised the question: Why are drugs in the U.S. health system so crazy expensive?
Eric Williams, MD
Dr. Williams offers a poem, “Sleeping Through the Storm,” that is poignant and reflective of our turbulent times of expanding war, political upheaval and the presence of fentanyl. We're all in this together, he reminds us.
All articles are copyrighted for publication in this magazine and on the Society’s website. Contact the Sierra Sacramento Valley Medical Society for permission to reprint.
Editorial Committee
Megan Babb, DO
Sean Deane, MD
Caroline Giroux, MD
Manoj Kesarwani, MD
Robert LaPerriere, MD
Karen Poirier-Brode, MD
Gerald Rogan, MD
Leslie Tamura, DO
Glennah Trochet, MD
Lee Welter, MD
Eric Williams, MD
Medical Student Representatives

Aileen Wetzel, Executive Director
Ken Smith, Managing Editor
To easily email an author, click on their picture on the contributors page or in their article.

Cover photo: Winter at Washoe Lake, south of Reno.
Photo by Lindsay Coate.
Volume 75/Number 1
Official publication of the
Sierra Sacramento Valley Medical Society
5380 Elvas Avenue
Sacramento, CA 95819
916.452.2671
916.452.2690 fax
info@ssvms.org
Sierra Sacramento Valley Medicine, the official journal of the Sierra Sacramento Valley Medical Society, is a forum for discussion and debate of news, official policy and diverse opinions about professional practice issues and ideas, as well as information about members’ personal interests.
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Opinions expressed by authors are their own, and not necessarily those of Sierra Sacramento Valley Medicine or the Sierra Sacramento Valley Medical Society. Sierra Sacramento Valley Medicine reserves the right to edit all contributions for clarity and length, as well as to reject any material submitted. Not responsible for unsolicited manuscripts. ©2024 Sierra Sacramento Valley Medical Society
Sierra Sacramento Valley Medicine (ISSN 0886 2826) is published bimonthly by the Sierra Sacramento Valley Medical Society, 5380 Elvas Ave., Sacramento, CA 95819. Subscriptions are $26.00 per year. Periodicals postage paid at Sacramento, CA and additional mailing offices. Correspondence should be addressed to Sierra Sacramento Valley Medicine, 5380 Elvas Ave., Sacramento, CA 95819-2396. Telephone (916) 452-2671.
2024 Officers & Board of Directors
Vanessa Walker, DO, President
Adam Dougherty, MD, President-Elect
J. Bianca Roberts, MD,
Immediate Past President
District 1
Lisa Guirguis, MD
District 2
Sarah Barnhard, MD
Janine Bera, MD
Raminder Gill, MD
Eli Groppo, MD
District 3
Tom Valdez, MD
District 4
Shideh Chinichian, MD
District 5
Olana Aberra, MD
Christina Bilyeu, MD
John Coburn, MD
Roderick Vitangcol, MD
District 6
Karen Hopp, MD
2024 CMA Delegation
Delegates
District 1
Reinhardt Hilzinger, MD
District 2
Lydia Wytrzes, MD
District 3
Tom Valdez, MD
District 4
Anand Mehta, MD
District 5
Sean Deane, MD
District 6
Karen Hopp, MD
At-Large Delegates
Sharmila Amolik, MD
Barbara Arnold, MD
Megan Babb, DO
Janine Bera, MD
Christine Braid, DO
Carol Burch, MD
Amber Chatwin, MD
Angelina Crans Yoon, MD
Mark Drabkin, MD
Gordon Garcia, MD
Ann Gerhardt, MD
Douglas Gibson, MD
Farzam Gorouhi,MD
Richard Jones, MD
Steven Kmucha, MD
Hao (Harry) Li, MD
Vong Lee, MD
Charles McDonnell, MD
Leena Mehta, MD
Sandra Mendez, MD
Sen. Richard Pan, MD
Siddharth Raghavan, MD
Paul Reynolds, MD
Ernesto Rivera, MD
J. Bianca Roberts, MD
Ellen Shank, MD
Ajay Singh, MD
Lee Snook, MD
Vanessa Walker, DO
John Wiesenfarth, MD
Anna Yap, MD
Alternate Delegates
District 1
Dana Jacques, MD
District 2
Eric Tepper, MD
District 3
Vacant
District 4
Shideh Chinichian, MD
District 5
Dale Cotton, MD
District 6
Sarah Favila, MD
At-Large Alternate Delegates
Olana Aberra, MD
Jonathan Aron, MD
Alyssa Ashbaugh, MD
Daniel Bernet, DO
Christina Bilyeu, MD
Leo Chen, MD
Ashley Feldkamp, MD
Eli Groppo, MD
Helena Hart-Rathbun, MD
Brent Jackson, MD
Arthur Jey, MD
Gregory Kann, MD
Erin Kong, MD
Syed Latif, MD
Leonel Mendoza, MD
Vimal Mishra, MD
Steve Monda, MD
Eric Tepper, MD
David Terca, MD
Virginia Tsai, MD
Asmaneh Yamagata, MD
CMA Trustees, District XI
Adam Dougherty, MD
Margaret Parsons, MD
Robert Oldham, MD
AMA Delegation, District XI
Barbara Arnold, MD
Debra Lupeika, MD