San Francisco Marin Medical Society Opposes Child Separation Practices at the Mexican Border June 22, 2018 Advocacy, Local Events, SFMMS Member Events Border, children, Rally 0 San Francisco Marin Medical Society Opposes Child Separation Practices at the Mexican Border FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: June 22, 2018 Erin Henke ehenke@sfmms.org (415) 302-2746 San Francisco, CA – The leadership of the San Francisco Marin Medical Society (SFMMS), the 150-year old association representing more than 2,000 physicians in Marin and SF counties, joined the growing list of medical groups opposed to separating immigrant children from their parents or guardians at the Mexican border. The American Academy of Pediatrics and American Psychiatric Association have already condemned the child separation and incarceration practices. SFMMS President John Maa, MD, stated: "We are grateful that the unnecessary federal policy of child separation at the border has been brought to an immediate end, but we must also work to ensure that it will never return." He has issued a call for SFMMS members to participate in the "Families Belong Together" rally on Saturday, June 23rd at Justin Herman Plaza. Last week, the American Medical Association (AMA) also passed a resolution opposing the separation of children from their parents at the Mexican border. SFMMS, representing doctors across specialties who care for children and families, joins the AMA, pediatricians, and mental health physicians in condemning this horrific policy. The negative health consequences of childhood traumatic events disrupt the natural development of a growing brain and body and increase the risk of physical and mental health illnesses. The negative effects on the family and community are far-reaching and long-lasting. The SFMMS leadership have unanimously voted to oppose the child separation actions, with many in the physician leadership noting that they themselves, their parents, and many of their patients were immigrants and that the practice serves little practical purpose. SFMMS board member, Monique Schaulis, MD, remarked: “We recommend explicit condemnation of these practices and the urgent reunification of families separated by this policy.” Dr. Maa continued, “As physicians in San Francisco and Marin who prioritize health over politics, we join the chorus of other physician organizations speaking out against this unnecessary and inhumane policy decision.” ### San Francisco Marin Medical Society Leadership: Tomás Aragón, MD; Charles Binkley, MD; Alice Chen, MD; Lawrence Cheung, MD; Shannon Udovic-Constant, MD; Nida Degesys, MD; Irina deFischer, MD; George Fouras, MD; Ben Franc, MD; Gordon Fung, MD; Robert Harvey, MD; Man-Kit Leung, MD; John Maa, MD; Rob Margolin, MD; Jason Nau, MD; Kim Newell Green, MD; Stephanie Oltmann, MD; Heyman Oo, MD; Ray Oshtory, MD; Richard Podolin, MD; Justin Quock, MD; Monique Schaulis, MD; Jeff Stevenson, MD; Michael Schrader, MD; Winnie Tong, MD; Christina Wang; Eric Wang MD About the San Francisco Marin Medical Society: In 2017, the San Francisco Marin Medical Society (SFMMS) was created by combining the San Francisco Medical Society, and the Marin Medical Society. With more than 2,000 members, SFMMS unites dedicated physicians to champion quality health care and innovation for patients and the community and serves the professional needs of physicians in San Francisco and Marin. SFMMS aims for its membership to provide exemplary health care to the community, experience professional fulfillment and shape the future of medicine. For more information, visit www.sfmms.org. PDF Version: Rally Press Release.pdf Comments are closed.
