I started a newsletter for our chapter last January. I email it to all chapter members who have email addresses. As President last year, I started each newsletter with "A note from the President", but I also encouraged all officers to submit articles. I ALWAYS list all members who passed the certification exam! There is a section devoted to upcoming seminars, workshops, etc. I list any known job openings or jobs wanted. There is a section on the next chapter meeting with info on the speaker, topic, anything you might need to bring with you, date, time, location. Depending on space, I may give an unusual medical term with the definition. I've tried to start a community section, to list anything coming up in the community that others may be interested in, such as support groups. This year I added a coding section. I listed 5 diangoses and will print the correct ICD-9 codes in the February issue, along with a new coding challenge. I also added a "positive thought for the month" to the newsletter. As President, I ended each meeting with a positive moment. I don't want to miss an opportunity of sharing anything positive, so I added this to the newsletter for 2009!
I try to keep the newsletter under 3 pages, so what goes into each one depends on how much info I have received throughout the month. I would like to have a "coder spotlight" where an interview with a member can be shared. I think that would be very interesting.
I do know that members who cannot or do not attend chapter meetings will read the newsletter! I received positive comments all throughout last year! A newsletter is a great way to keep members informed, and you never know when a member will attend a meeting for the first time, based on what they read in the newsletter!
I'm happy to share our newsletter with you. If you are still interested, feel free to email me at
brinsonfr@sjchs.org
Good Luck!
Freda