Bike Helmet Distribution

Each year since 1997, individual members of the Rhode Island Medical Society make special donations to a fund that RIMS uses to purchase hundreds of bicycle helmets.

Through a cooperative arrangement with the Rhode Island Department of Human Services, vouchers for the helmets are distributed to RIteCare families.

Every spring, RIMS volunteers distribute the helmets along with bike safety coloring books, reflective spoke sliders and other items donated by the RIMS Foundation.

In 2007, RIMS gave away its 6000th helmet.

The program is supported in part by the Rhode Island Medical Society Foundation.

Tar Wars® Anti-tobacco Education

Celebrating our 20th Anniversary!
Annually since 1993, the Rhode Island Academy of Family Physicians, the Rhode Island Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Rhode Island Medical Society have cooperated to bring the national Tar Wars® anti-smoking educational program to fifth-graders in Rhode Island.

Become a Tar Wars® Volunteer
Each year, roughly 70 RIMS member physicians volunteer their time to go into as many as 51 middle schools throughout Rhode Island, where they involve up to 3500 pupils in the program. TarWars® teaches critical thinking about tobacco advertising, helps children make informed choices, and resist peer pressure.
Volunteer Flyer
Volunteer Form

Annual Poster Contest
Winners of school-based poster competitions participate in a state-wide poster contest in the spring. Celebrity judges choose a Rhode Island winner who, along with his or her parents, is given a free trip to the national TarWars® awards ceremony.

Good news for anti-tobacco advocates
Letter from Dr. Frazzano, RI Chair

Rhode Island Tar Wars® is supported by Rhode island Medical Society Foundation.

Dr. Charles L. Hill Award

Recipients of the Dr. Charles L. Hill Award

1981
1982
1983
1984
1985
1986
1987
1988
1989
1990
1991
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006

2007
2008

2009
2010
2011
2012

Charles L. Hill, MD (posthumously)
Francis B. Sargent, MD
John A. Dillon, MD
Henry T. Randall, MD
Fiorindo A. Simeone, MD
Milton W. Hamolsky, MD
Americo A. Savastano, MD
Herbert Rakatansky, MD
Siebert Goldowsky, MD
Frances P. Conklin, MD
H. Denman Scott, MD
Stanley Aronson, MD
Paul J. M. Healey, MD
Charles P. Shoemaker, Jr, MD
Stanley H. Block, MD
Richard G. Bertini, MD
David S. Greer, MD
Josiah Rich, MD
(not awarded)
Charles C.J. Carpenter, MD
Vincent R. Hunt, MD
David P. Carter, MD
Louis A. Leone, MD; Charles Kuhn, MD
Arun K. Singh, MD
Raymon S. Riley, MD
Arthur A. Bert, MD
Brandon H. Krupp, MD
Kathleen C. Hittner, MD
Alvin Fischer, MD; Kenneth Mayer, MD; Physicians for Human Rights
Michael E. Migliori, MD, FACS
David Ettensohn, MD
Arthur A. Frazzano, MD
Charles J. McDonald, MD

Dr. Herbert Rakatansky Award

The Dr. Herbert Rakatansky Award was established by vote of the Council in 2008 to recognize individuals who have distinguished themselves through exemplary professionalism and/or humanitarian service in the field of medicine. The first recipient was Herbert Rakatansky, MD, on September 27, 2008.

2008
2009
2010
2011
2012

Herbert Rakatansky, MD
Edwin N. Forman, MD
Caroline Troise, MD
Pablo Rodriguez, MD
Joseph D. DiMase, MD
Patrick J. Sweeney, MD, PhD, MPH

Chapin Oration

Chapin Orators have included:

1987

Robert Gallo, MD
Co-discoverer of the AIDS virus

1992

Arnold Relman, MD (1985) and
Jerome Kassirer, MD
Editors, New England Journal of Medicine

1993

Walter Willett, MD, DPH
Harvard School of Public Health

1995

Nancy Dickey, MD
President, American Medical Association

1997

Jeffrey Cain, MD
Denver, Colorado, founder of Tar Wars®

1999

Katherine Kaufer Christoffel, MD, MPH
Children's Memorial Medical Center in Chicago,spoke on "Public Health Approaches to Reducing Gun Injury and Death"

Firearm Safety

ASK (Asking Saves Kids) Campaign
ASK Day is part of a public awareness campaign working to keep kids safe from injuries involving firearms. Michael E. Migliori, MD, a past -president of RIMS, is the Rhode Island Chair of the event usually held in summer when children are likely to spend time visiting friends' homes. Parents are reminded: Ask if there is a gun where your child plays.

National ASK Day is sponsored by PAX, a non-profit organization seeking to end gun violence, and the American Academy of Pediatrics. The ASK campaign has already prevented countless tragedies by reaching over two million households.

Other initiatives
RIMS, with the is support by the RIMS Foundation, works with state and local police deparments, and the SAFEKIDS Coalition to acquire and distribute trigger locks and educational materials, including materials developed by the American Medical Association to help physicians talk to patients about firearm safety.
ABCs of gun safety for children

Campaign School

RIMS Campaign school supports physicians’ political activism through its day-long course “Getting Elected 101,” first offered in November 2003. The profession and the public are well served when physicians and other health care professionals bring their values and their experience to the process of making public policy. One physician in the General Assembly would be in an influential position to exercise leadership and serve as a resource for other members of the legislature on issues relating to health care and medical economics.

Getting (More) Involved 101

The Rhode Island Medical Society and the Rhode Island Medical Political Action Committee (RIMPAC) offer a half-day course on how doctors can affect health care policy at the state and national level. Through instruction on the process of how an idea becomes a law in Rhode Island, attendees learn to be able to anticipate and exploit opportunities for citizen intervention in the healthcare policy-making process, as measured by the completion of an advocacy letter and/or personal advocacy visit to an elected official. NORCAL, the ACCME-accredited mutual insurance company, provides CME credit for participants in this seminar.

Charity Golf Classic

From 1993 to 2009, RIMS sponsored an annual golf tournament as a fundraiser for the RIMS Foundation and a social occasion for members. This popular fundraiser was successfully chaired by Charles "Bud" Kahn, MD since its inception. Proceeds from the tournament supported RIMS Foundation programs including Tar Wars, Annual ASK Day, and other charitable, educational and scientific activities.

Health Information Technology Fair

In 2005 RIMS’ held its first Health Information Technology Fair to providethe opportunity for Rhode Island physicians and medical office staff members to learn about the latest developments and opportunities in the fast-changing world of HIT, with knowledgeable speakers and vendors, all in one place. The Fair was a cooperative venture among Quality Partners of Rhode Island, the Women & Infants PHO, and the Rhode Island Medical Society.

Mini-Internships for Community Leaders

The Medical Society periodically conducts two-day "mini-internship" programs for lay leaders in the community by invitation. Interns shadow physicians as they go about their normal workday. Since the summer of 1991, has Society has conducted 17 such programs involving nine hospitals, 68 preceptors, and 81 interns.

• Kent County Memorial Hospital
• Landmark Medical Center
• Memorial Hospital of Rhode Island,
• Newport Hospital
• Rhode Island Hospital
• Roger Williams Medical Center
• St. Joseph Health Services (Fatima unit)
• South County Hospital
• The Miriam Hospital
• Westerly Hospital
• Women & Infants Hospitalv

Each of the hospitals listed has hosted one or more Mini-Internship Programs arranged and sponsored by the Rhode Island Medical Society.

Alumni of Rhode Island Medical Society Mini-internship Programs
(through December 2000)
• Sandra Andaloro, vice president, ER Smith Associates
• M.J. Andersen, editorial writer, Providence Journal-Bulletin
• Robert Anderson, director of RIMS IBC
• Elaine Bartro, CEO, Visiting Nurses Service
• Norman Baxter, executive director, RI Medical Society*
• The Honorable Roger Begin, lieutenant governor
• The Honorable Nancy Benoit, Chair, RI Dept. of Health, Education & Welfare
• Sherman Berger, public member, Board of Medical Licensure & Discipline
• Larry Berman, assistant managing editor, Woonsocket Call, press secretary for
• Congressman Patrick Kennedy
• The Honorable Kenneth Bianchi, town administrator, N. Smithfield
• F. Richard Burdett, executive director, RI Business Group on Health
• Gina Cacchiotti, assistant to Congressman Ronald Machtley
• Margie Coloian, director of communications, RI Medical Society
• Darlene Crist, account executive, Duffy and Shanley*
• Nikki Deary, Deputy Chief Administrative Officer, Dept. of Health
• Steven DeToy, director of government relations, RI Medical Society
• Susan Fine, policy director, Governor's office
• Alan Flink, Esq., president, Rhode Island Bar Association
• The Honorable Michael Forte, vice chair, Senate Judiciary*
• Felice Freyer, medical reporter, Providence Journal-Bulletin
• Bishop Louis Gelineau, Diocese of Providence
• Mary Geoffrey, health benefits adviser, Newport Naval Hospital
• Maureen Glynn, Esq., Assistant Attorney General
• Jack Grant, vice president, Blue Cross/Blue Shield of RI
• Rabbi Leslie Gutterman, LL.D.
• The Honorable Sandra Hanaway, Chair, Senate HEW
• Raymond Harrison, aide to House Speaker Matthew Smith*
• John Howell, publisher, Warwick Beacon
• William J. Hunt, member, Board of Trustees, Memorial Hospital of RI
• The Honorable William Irons
• Mary Jo Orsinger, paralegal, Orsinger & Nardone
• The Honorable Brian P. Kennedy
• Virginia Kenney, consultant to Kenney Manufacturing
• Keith Kimberlin, staff reporter, Westerly Sun
• Elliot Krieger, editor, Providence Sunday Journal Magazine
• Matthew J. Laliberte, Senior Claims Investigator, NORCAL
• Nancy Langrall, policy director, Cong. Jack Reed's office
• Joseph LaPlume, president of Pier Bank
• The Honorable Sal Mancini, mayor of North • Providence
• Carol J. Manglass, Norcal Mutual Insurance Co.
• Todd Manglass, Norcal Mutual Insurance Co.
• Jason Martesian, Director, Government Affairs, Northern R I. Chamber of Commerce
• Genevieve M. Martin, Esq., Special Assistant Attorney General
• Craig May, senior public information officer, AMA
• Nancy Mayer, legal counsel, RI Dept. of Business Regulation, RI General Treasurer
• Bruce McIntyre, Esq., Board of Medical Licensure & Discipline
• Sister Sheila Megley, provost exec. vice president, Salve Regina College
• Barbara Morse, WJAR-TV
• John Nazirian, President, Rhode Island College
• Lisa O'Neill, Medical Professional Liability Specialist, RIMS IBC
• Mark Patinkin, columnist, Providence Journal-Bulletin
• Calvin Pierson, president, Hospital Association of RI
• Barbara Polichetti, Providence Journal-Bulletin
• Max Powell, III, CEO, Ocean State Physicians Health Plan
• Peter Quattromani, Assistant Director of Policy, Office of the Governor
• Charles Read, Providence Business News
• Edwina Rego, Branch Administrator, RI Medical Society
• The Honorable John Revens, Senate majority leader*
• Pam Richter, Director, Strategic & Public Policy, Brown University
• Donald A. Roach, CEO, Kilburn Isotronics
• The Honorable Elizabeth Roberts, public member, Board of Medical Licensure & Discipline, state senator
• Stephen Rooks, personnel manager, Vargas Manufacturing
• Keith Stokes, senior analyst, Governor Sundlun
• William Sweeney, executive vice president, Hospital Association of Rhode Island*
• Rogeriee Thompson, associate justice, Providence District Court
• Ernest C. Torres, justice, US District Court for Rhode Island
• Brad Voelz, vice president, CVS
• The Honorable Mary Lou Walter, member, House HEW*
• Newell Warde, executive director, RI Medical Society
• William Waters, PhD, assistant director, Health Policy, RI Dept. of Health*
• Sheldon Whitehouse, US Attorney, RI Attorney General
• Frederick Wilson, publisher of Narragansett Times
• The Honorable Myrth York, chair, Senate HEW
• The Honorable George Zainyeh, vice chair, House HEW

*In January 1986, these interns participated in a one and one-half day program called "In vivo," which was held at Pawtucket Memorial Hospital.