Current News and Personal Opinion is produced by 
John Hardman RPA-C as a volunteer service for Minnesota PA's. 

Speaking of guilt, September is also National Cholesterol Education Month as declared by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, part of the National Institutes of Health. As part of that effort an interactive Web site has been set up (www.nhlbi.nih.gov) . This site is an excellent resource for PA's as well as the general public for information on cholesterol. 

So what about the guilt? Well, a little personal story ensues. It wasn't until I was attending a sponsored CME activity that included dining in an elegant railroad car consuming a high fat meal along with several other PA's, when the topic turned to the use of a cholesterol lowering drug by one of the other PA's! I was astonished to learn of my own naivety, in that I would be surprised that a fellow colleague would actually suffer from hypercholesterolemia, and would be actively undergoing treatment by his physician. What? PA's actually have problems too? We take care of patients every working day, and like many other health care professionals we often ignore personal health care issues for a variety of reasons, not the least of which is good old denial.  So what was I doing about my cholesterol?  I had not even checked it since a free test was done at an AAPA convention some several years ago! Well, I submitted to the 12 hour fast and had a lipid panel done, and low and behold the numbers were there. Total cholesterol and LDL were up! So I consulted with my physician and set up a treatment plan. Guilt aside, and the reference to guilt is really only for humor, all of us are urged to take good care of ourselves. This month take a moment to consider cholesterol in your patients and yourself  if needed and check out some of the online sources of information at  www.nhlbi.nih.gov/chd/. 

Also be sure to check out this month's CME offered by MAPA at www.mnmed.org/mapa/cme.html.
This should prove to be another great opportunity to get CME credits, network with friends and see another part of Minnesota at a very beautiful time of year. 

Next month, October 6th is National PA Day! This could be an opportunity for you to spread the word about PA's in your own home town or work site.  Consider hosting a learning lunch at the work site promoting what PA's do for our supervising physicians and our patients. Pass out PA buttons or pamphlets. Set up a public service announcement with local radio or tv networks. Try something original. Be creative! Let me know what you plan to do and I can post your ideas in a future edition of this column. 

If you want to see what our newsletter editor is up to these days, check out Walt Rothwell's MAPA Publications Web Page at http://members.home.net/medicard/MAPA/index.html.

Walt has worked hard for MAPA and has set up a very valuable site for accessing MAPA publications including previous ImPAct newsletter articles, pamphlets, and a Jobs listing which should soon be linked directly from our main page at http://members.home.net/medicard/MAPA/postings.html.

So what are you doing for MAPA? Consider helping out one of the committees.

There is a wealth of opportunities for members, new and old. The best way to get in on what's going on at MAPA is to be involved in some way to contribute to the organization. This can be as little of a commitment as making a few phone calls or writing a letter. 

Next issue? Perhaps I'll report on lowered cholesterol values, or better yet, new research may show that cholesterol values as in that Woody Allen movie, Sleeper, should actually be high! Don't count on it.