About Us
The Michigan State Medical Society Alliance is an organization of over 1,300 physician spouses, working together for the benefit of their communities, their families and the profession of medicine. The MSMS-A is a vital link in the federation of over 60,000 medical spouses nationwide, who strive to improve the health and life-styles of all citizens. The Medical Alliance at all levels (county, state and national) provides a forum for sharing information and concerns about the practice of medicine, the quality of health care and the stresses faced by the medical family.
The MSMS Alliance is located at 120 W. Saginaw, East Lansing, MI 48823, in the MSMS building. For more information regarding the MSMS Alliance contact Gina Gibson, Executive Director at 517-336-5709 or e-mail at ggibson@msms.org.
A Coalition with the MICHIGAN STATE MEDICAL SOCIETY
In case you haven't noticed, we're a natural coalition. Medical Society members want to cultivate and improve relationships in the communities and with their colleagues. Medical Alliance members have as their objective the best interests of the medical professions. The Alliance can be a forum for spouses to learn about the medical profession and its related problems. Alliance members can also be another voice in the legislative arena and an effective force in public relations.
With the continuing changes in health care, it is of mutual benefit for the Medical Society and the Medical Alliance to cooperate and work together. Individual society members can lend expertise to Alliance health programs and projects as advisors or participants. The Medical Society benefits by having a resource of people power, experienced managers, and program planners with broad community contacts.
Alliance members can be effective monitors for legislative health issues and community health education by bringing awareness of gaps in services. Alliance members are also great public relations experts who can deliver timely health education messages and be an integral part of the medical association programs. Together, physicians and spouses can project a caring image that will strengthen community relationships and promote quality health education.
Immediate Past President Lakshmi Tummala's Farewell Speech MSMSA Annual Session May 4, 2009
As a student, back home in India, my favorite subjects were Geography and History. I enjoyed reading the National Geographic and travel magazines whenever I could. Little did I know that some day, I would get married to a physician who would bring me to the United States to make it my new home! I soon joined the physician spouse group, the Alliance which not only gave me an opportunity to give back to the community, it also gave me a chance to travel to different counties and make new friends.
Four years ago, when I was elected South East Regional Director, I was reminded of my late mother's words that “ A life without a purpose is meaningless.” Similarly, a job without a goal is not worth doing. I decided that my goal during my term would be to try to revive and strengthen some of the struggling county Alliances. I vigorously promoted the activities of the Alliance. This is because no one will want to join or stay in an organization that has no purpose. The Alliance is made up of individuals that are involved in community service. If you only want to do fun things, it is not for you. There are several social clubs that would cater to such activities. Of course you need to enjoy what you do. Therefore, to keep the members engaged, you have to have a good balance of fun and work. It is good to include some social events to keep the interest alive. By doing so, we could easily recruit new members as well as regain lost ones. This would help build membership because, membership is the back bone of any organization and the dues help support its activities.
As Regional Director, I was able to revive Jackson, Oakland and Wayne County Alliances. A lot of credit goes to the then state presidents and the county members who stepped up to the plate to help move their Alliances forward. Last year, when I was elected as President, my focus again was to revive the counties. This time, it was Monroe, Northern Michigan, Saginaw and St. Clair. I am happy to inform you that since my visits to these counties, Northern Michigan and Monroe have elected new leaders who have a busy year ahead. Saginaw will soon be installing their new officers and St. Clair will follow. My thanks to our Membership Chair Felicity Thompson, Health Promotion Chair Mary Lou Mathias, Regional Directors Sue Ellison, Kee Ja Kang and Patty Olsen as well as MSMS Political Affairs Manager, Joshua Richmond who not only traveled with me to these counties, they worked above and beyond their jobs to help me.
Over time, I had several 'phone conversations with members from various counties. Through attending their meetings, I was finally able to match the names with the faces and in the process make new friendships. During this past year, I was able to visit fifteen counties. Many years ago, I had read about these places in travel magazines, but never in my wildest dreams did I imagine that one day I would be able to see them all!
Before I took office as President of MSMSA, I was unaware of the clout this title comes with. I used it to my advantage to make connections within the health care community. I was able to arrange presentations in schools on over the counter prescription drug and alcohol abuse, get Blue Cross and Blue Shield to provide us with kits on childhood obesity to be distributed to parents as well as have spouses of physicians from ethnic medical organizations join the Alliance.
As I stand here and look around me, I am filled with excitement of the possibilities that lie ahead of us. As members of this group, we share many qualities: strength, commitment, camaraderie and most of all, our strong sense of community. We have the ability to achieve great things. For the many of you who have given so much of yourselves towards our causes, I thank you for your tremendous support. I urge you to be actively involved in this dynamic organization and some day be willing to be elected as leaders. If I can do it, any one can, since it is the easiest of all jobs. The difficult part is picking the right people who are willing to serve and be committed to their job. Once you have done that, you can sit back and relax! I was fortunate to have had some of the most wonderful people to work with. You were great workers who took your jobs seriously and followed through. Even the two months I was away in India, I could take it easy and enjoy myself since I knew that everything was being taken care of, thanks to you and our very efficient Executive Director, Gina Gibson.
Thank you for electing me as your President. It has been a distinct honor and privilege to serve you. This past year has been an eventful and challenging one for me. I lost a few people who were near and dear to me. On the other hand, it was a very rewarding one too. As a person, I have grown and as an individual, I learned a lot. My life has been richer by the numerous relationships I built over the past few years. I would like to thank the current and past presidents of the counties and the past presidents of the state. You have devoted so much of your time and talent to the organizations you so ably served. Please, do not let it be your only goal. Do continue to pay your dues and serve in whatever capacity you can. We need you! You should be the mentors for our future leaders. As Eleanor Roosevelt once said, “ When you cease to make a contribution, you begin to die.” Therefore, if your time permits, do play an active role. Take on something that is do-able, you will be glad you did. I always believe that life is never so busy that there is no time to share. Because, “Volunteering is not a choice. It is a responsibility.”
I would now like to thank the Michigan State Medical Society and its staff, the Medical Society presidents of the revived county Alliances and their staff who were always willing to go that extra mile to help me in my endeavors. A special thank you goes to Gina who is always available and willing to help with her ability and experience. I contacted her almost every day, mostly for business and sometimes for just a friendly chat.
And last but not least, I would like to thank my husband Jawahar who is my strength, my children Satish and Sunita and my son-in-law Sachin who are my support. They have always been there cheering and encouraging me and my activities.