2018 Washoe County Medical Society Installation Speech

Ronald Swanger, M.D.

I would like to start by extending my appreciation and gratitude to Mary Ann and Wendy for making this event possible. I would also like to thank my partners: Ross Golding, Eric Kraemer, and Vijay Sekhon for their understanding and flexibility in coordinating schedules to allow me to participate in the Washoe County Medical Society. Most importantly, I want to thank my mother, who I am so happy can be here tonight, and my wife and four boys, who I could not make it through life without. I love you Diane, thank you for always encouraging and supporting me. Finally, I would like to thank our colleagues from the Alliance, Clark County Medical Society, Dr.s Adashek,Baron and Havins, with Executive Director Alex Silverman, and Cat O’Mara, Executive Director of the NSMA, for attending tonight.

I am truly honored and privileged to be your 112th President of the Washoe County Medical Society. Many of you are my friends, and many of you I do not know. For those that know me, I have recently been described by Reno Diagnostics Centers staff as, “dependable and always patient with any questions from the staff, treats everyone with respect and kindness, has a contagious sense of humor, and has an incredible bedside manner and puts our patients at ease.” The last one is my favorite. I had to put that in for all the people in the room who think that radiologists are antisocial geeks who sit in dark rooms spending their days talking to a computer. For those who do not know me, I value and try to instill in my children a strong work ethic, philanthropy, and showing love to your friends and family above all else. I really do try my hardest, and give it the most I can at the time. I genuinely feel bad when I make a mistake and will admit to it. The last thing I want to tell you about myself is that I pride myself on being highly approachable. I would hope anyone, no matter what specialty, institution, or practice, would feel comfortable talking with me. I view it as my duty to be your impartial President, maintain your confidence, and represent the Society to the best of my ability.

The Washoe County Medical Society is in a rebuilding phase. We have a new Executive Director, new office, and new software to integrate our membership database information, billing, and website all in one. In the past several years, we have begun reaching out to the local hospitals and the University of Nevada, Reno School of Medicine. We will continue these partnerships conducting community outreach and physician education, with our first symposia this year discussing the impact and implementation of AB474, the Governor’s opioid bill. This, and many other great efforts, are only possible through the tremendous work of staff and volunteer time of your fellow physicians.

We have met multiple times over this past year to develop a strategic plan and direction for WCMS for the next 3-5 years, as well as to discuss how we can increase membership. The question we always come back to is, “How can the WCMS provide value to each of its’ members?” What makes someone want to be a member? Obviously, we provide membership discounts through our Group Purchasing Organization, of which some of you I’m guessing did not know exists. In collaboration with the NSMA, the Governmental Affairs Commission provides superb lobbying on behalf of all physicians in Nevada having a profound impact on legislation. Then there is the social component. Our two major events are our annual installation dinner and Fall meet and greet, which we will continue as a family friendly function like this past year at Bartley Ranch. Personally, I have made a lot of really good friends through WCMS. Meetings like this one not only provide opportunities for meeting new colleagues and practice building but allows friends to come together.

As a student of the UNR Executive MBA program, I partnered with fellow classmates to do a thorough review of WCMS and create a marketing plan. We found that WCMS has long been an organization with a high private practice demographic of mature physicians. We would like to expand and encourage membership from hospital-based physicians, as well as residents and medical students, increasing membership among younger physicians. To that end, this year we will have more educational seminars, social engagements, and networking opportunities for members and prospective members. With our new software integrating web pages and membership database information combined with social media sites Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram we will work hard to improve our communication with members without overwhelming you all with emails. I sure hope to see many of you at other events throughout this year and look forward to making some new friends.

Thank you all for coming and have a wonderful night.