Thanks again to Dr. Michelle Quiogue (follow her on twitter) for coming on the show last night. She shared her story about the saving of the Family Medicine Residency program in Bakersfield, California. She is not directly connected with the program, but through a Facebook update, she learned the news and then sprung into action.
Through her advocacy training from the California Academy of Family Physicians, she contacted the local politicians through letters and phone calls. She also helped coordinate the efforts of the Family Medicine community to help get the word out.
In the video above, she described the scene at the meeting where many people gave testimony to keep the program open. She stated that there was three hours of testimony given my many individuals. At the end of the meeting, the board ordered the hospital CEO to hire a new intern class for the program.
In the second portion of the video above, I asked her what she tells people who say they are too busy for Family Medicine advocacy efforts. I encourage you to download the entire audio podcast of Family Medicine Rocks Episode 246. Can download from the mp3 file from the link below, or here. I also encouage you to "Like" the facebook page for this site and to follow me on twitter. Thanks so much!