Quantifying CUA’s progress

Abstract

As CUA President, I am pleased to be able to report on some updates stemming from the CUA Strategic Plan. We have established 7 task forces to meet the goals set out in the Plan. Develop and implement an education business plan that will meet the life-long needs of members and contribute to overall CUA revenue Develop and implement an advocacy business plan that will position the CUA as the voice of matters urological in Canada Develop and implement a publishing business plan that will support the CUA’s education and advocacy initiatives and contribute to overall CUA revenue Develop and implement a practice support business plan that will be of value to the membership Develop and implement a member engagement/value strategy Develop a sustainable funding base, working with current partners to identify a broader range of revenue options Design and implement the appropriate organizational model We have delineated a timeline for each of these 7 items. Chairs and members have been selected. The updates were presented at Winter Executive Meeting with the plan to present the first-year progress to CUA members at Annual General Meeting this summer in Charlottetown on Tuesday, June 26 at noon. On a related note, the results of our 2009 survey have been released. This data will help us understand the needs of our members and will allow us to develop a more valuable benefit package. As the data suggests (see Fig. 1), the patient brochures and the CUA Annual Meeting tie as the most valuable benefits for members. Close in second is our journal, CUAJ. These results are encouraging and helpful in knowing that CUA is on the right track in its services to members. Fig. 1. Data based on the CUA 2009 member survey. Another recent CUA initiative contributing to improving societal health is the urologic information site – uroinfo.ca (www.uroinfo.ca). This site is becoming the “go-to” place for patients. The information on this site is written by CUA members. The goal of the site is to be the source of honest and balanced information about urology. The site is open to the general public, patients and their family members. The CUA Executive is continuing to restructure the Central Office with the goal of using our resources more effectively and efficiently. We will keep you informed on changes as they happen – stay tuned to the CUA Newsletter and the CUAJ for any updates. We will continue to do our best to serve our members. We welcome your feedback! I encourage you to attend our Annual General Meeting and to get involved in the association – your association! Let me end this report by inviting you to join us in Charlottetown for our first-ever Annual Meeting in Prince Edward Island! Dr. Michael Mulligan and Ian Reid, along with the rest of the local organizing committee, have been working hard to make sure that every attendee will enjoy the social program. The scientific program, chaired by Dr. Ricardo Rendon, will feature state-of the-art lectures from key opinion leaders in urology, educational fora addressing a wide spectrum of the most compelling issues and controversies in urology, and abstract-driven session showcasing the most cutting-edge research being done in Canada today. For more information and to register online, visit www.cuameeting.org.