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PRESIDENT’S
MESSAGE
Our Local Government and
the Medical Society
How do we work together for the betterment of
the citizens of San Antonio and Bexar County?
By Leah Jacobson, MD, 2017 BCMS President
This May, the citizens of San Antonio and surrounding areas elimination of health and health care disparities.”1 We must
will elect mayors and city council members. As physicians, it is keep these ideals in mind when we and our local leaders make
important that we have a good knowledge of where they stand, important decisions for our community.
especially on community health care issues. We hold them ac-
countable for other issues, such as education/libraries, taxes and As one of the largest cities in the United States, San Antonio
public works improvements. Those are definitely important is- does not have a health and human services advisory committee
sues. These priorities are on the ballot this May with the pro- to help educate and guide our local city leaders on these matters.
posed $850 million 2017-2022 Bond Project for the city of San We do have a great group of health visionaries through the
Antonio (http://www.sanantonio.gov/2017Bond). Health Collaborative of Bexar County, but I believe that local
leaders would benefit from a group of advisors as these leaders
Local leaders impact health care both directly and indirectly. deal with health-related issues. We, at the Medical Society, feel
It is imperative that we also hold them accountable for health is- privileged to have been invited to participate in the selection of
sues that affect our patients and the community. In order to help the next Metropolitan Health Director. It is collaborative efforts
facilitate this, the Medical Society has issued a challenge to the such as this that will allow our members to have a bigger voice
candidates running for positions in San Antonio. We have sub- in this community. The Medical Society will continue to work
mitted a series of questions to the candidates asking about topics on various efforts to increase our presence and involvement in
including healthy eating, transportation, violence, mental health, our community — be it with the city of San Antonio, Bexar
access to health care, and others. We will be posting their replies County, or surrounding cities/municipalities.
on our social media sites for all our members to read. We hope
that this will allow you to make a more informed decision when I look forward to meeting and working with county and city
it comes to casting your vote. leaders on health care issues that affect us and our patients. If
there are particular topics that you feel are important for the
An informative report with regards to these issues is the Medical Society to know about, please contact us
2016 Bexar County Community Health Needs Assessment leahjacobson.bcms2017@gmail.com.
(2016 Bexar County Community Health Needs Assessment:
Full Report (PDF, 160 pp) ). The 2016 Assessment sought to We are a GREAT city, but we have room for improvement.
"support Bexar County partners in moving from knowing Remember — every vote counts. Let's help make a difference!
about local health needs and outcomes to changing those out-
comes. " Healthy People 2020 defines "health equity" as the Sincerely yours,
“attainment of the highest level of health for all people. Leah Jacobson, MD
Achieving health equity requires valuing everyone equally with
focused and ongoing societal efforts to address avoidable in- 1. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Disease
equalities, historical and contemporary injustices, and the Prevention and Health Promotion (2010). Healthy People 2020.
Washington, D.C. https://www.healthypeople.gov/2020/about/
foundation-health-measures/Disparities
8 San Antonio Medicine • March 2017
