The Hawaii State Society of Medical Assistants held its Fall 2025 CEU Workshop and General Meeting on Sunday, November 2, 2025, at Kalihi Palama Library in Honolulu. The day opened with check-in, the general member meeting, and elections, followed by two two-credit sessions for a total of four CEU credits.

Social Determinants of Health (2 CEU credits)

Speaker: Annabelle Stone, MPH, Director of Health Equity, AlohaCare

Annabelle Stone opened the day with a look at how conditions outside the exam room — housing, food access, transportation, income, education — shape patient outcomes long before a patient ever reaches a provider.

She introduced AlohaCare, the nonprofit health plan founded in 1994 by Hawaii's Community Health Centers and now the second-largest plan in the state, serving members eligible for QUEST (Medicaid) or a Medicare Advantage plan. Attendees learned about member services grounded in local practice and culture, including Native Hawaiian healing practices, Ai Pono healthy eating, Ho'oponopono conflict resolution, Active and Fit gym options, and lomilomi massage, along with educational programs such as A Promise of Hope, which connects members to GED pathways.

The session closed on health literacy in today's digital environment — the skills patients need to navigate a healthcare system that increasingly assumes comfort with portals, apps, and online forms, and practical ways medical assistants can improve patient understanding and engagement at the point of care.

Seeing Beyond Sight: Supporting Blind Patients with Compassion and Care (2 CEU credits)

Speaker: Marri Murdoch, Founder & President, Travel Visions Aloha for the Blind

After lunch, Marri Murdoch combined personal stories and participant experiences to examine the barriers blind and low-vision individuals encounter in health, wellness, and community life — and the strengths they bring to those same settings.

The session ended with an interactive guiding exercise. Participants alternated roles using blindfolds and safe guiding techniques, giving each attendee direct experience on both sides of the interaction.

Attendees left with:

• Practical sighted guide technique they can use in a clinic hallway, exam room, or waiting area
• A clearer sense of how to describe surroundings, forms, and instructions to a patient who cannot see them
• Greater cultural competency and empathy that applies directly to patient care

The Hawaii State Society of Medical Assistants hosted its Summer CEU Workshop and General Meeting on Sunday, June 1, 2025, at Kalihi Palama Library. The 4-hour educational event featured two impactful sessions: "What Type of 'Link' Are You at Work?" with Mislyn Alensonorin, sHRBP, Strategic HR Business Partner and President of MTMA & Associates, Ltd., where attendees explored workplace dynamics and learned strategies to become effective team members through understanding different workplace link types—Star Link, Chain Link, or Weak Link—while discovering practical solutions to overcome negative professional perceptions; and "NAMI's Ending the Silence" presented by Asianna Saragosa-Torres and Dominique Mundt, NAMI Hawaii Peer and Youth Coordinators, which provided essential education about mental health warning signs, recovery journeys, and resources to support patients and colleagues experiencing mental health challenges. The workshop equipped medical assistants with valuable professional development skills and mental health awareness that directly enhance their ability to provide compassionate, comprehensive patient care.

The Hawaii State Society of Medical Assistants hosted its Fall 2024 CEU Workshop on Saturday, October 12, 2024. The 4-hour educational event featured two valuable sessions: "Health Informatics - Focusing on Healthcare Technology and Data to Improve Patient Care" with Lynn Dagan, RN, MSN, owner of Hawaii CPR To Go and crisis nurse at Kaiser Permanente Hawaii; and "Essential Dental Hygiene Practices to Educate Patients" led by Mark Nartatez, MBA, CDA, CDIPC, FADAA, Dental Assisting Program Director at Kapiolani Community College. Participants learned critical bleeding control techniques in the first session and proper laboratory specimen handling in the second session, with both workshops providing practical skills that medical assistants could immediately apply to improve patient care and safety.

The Hawaii State Society of Medical Assistants hosted its Summer CEU Workshop and General Meeting on June 1, 2024, at Kapiolani Community College. Attendees participated in two valuable educational sessions: "Stop the Bleed Training" with Christina "TJ" Donayri from Queens Medical Center, where participants learned critical bleeding control techniques including direct pressure application, wound packing, and tourniquet use; and "Preventing Specimen Errors" with Clarence Bermejo and Justin Stanford from Clinical Laboratories of Hawaii, which covered proper phlebotomy techniques, specimen processing, and best practices to avoid errors that impact patient care. The event provided essential skills and knowledge for medical assistants while offering networking opportunities during the general member meeting.