The AAFP Family Medicine Congressional Conference (#FMCC or #aafpFMCC on twitter) will take place on May 13-14, 2012 in Washington, DC. During this conference, attendees will be updated on the legislative issues of highest importance to the AAFP. You can see a draft agenda of the conference here.
On day 2, this is the opportunity for meeting attendees to go up to Capitol Hill and talk with Congress representatives, Senators, and their staffs about the issues important to AAFP, Family Medicine, our patients, and our communities. I talk about this more in the video above.
Lots of talk on yesterday's podcast about last week's and next week's meetings on Family Medicine Rocks Episode 257. Last week was the AAFP ALF/NCSC meeting which I have a number of blog posts summarizing the meeting. In the video above, I encourage the Family Medicine social media community (also known as #FMRevolution community) to continue to turn their emotion into action.
Next week, in Washington DC, will be the AAFP Family Medicine Congressional Conference in which meeting attendees learn skills about lobbying Congress. In addition, there is an opportunity to talk with members of Congress during the conference.
You can listen to the show in the player below. You can also download the show here or at the bottom of the page. If you didn't already know, you can also subscribe to the show on iTunes. I also encourage you to follow me on twitter, "Like" the facebook page for this website, and to check out my youtube page. Enjoy!
Social media, what does that term mean to you? I'm not sure it had much for me, I simply ignored it. After attending the Annual Leadership Forum in Kansas City, MO. Over the last 3 days, I have learned that it is a force that cannot be ignored in our profession. It is actually a crucial tool for our technology driven society where people check their email and Facebook before even getting out of bed in the morning. It is hard for me to believe I am saying this. I thought Facebook was for catching up with friends! Twitter, well, I never quite knew what that was for. And hashtag (#) clueless.
After attending two lectures on its importance, I am finally a believer. This conference had 6 (yes 6!) lectures on social media. Thanks, AAFP, I get it! As Dr. Mike Sevilla, social media guru at www.familymedicinerocks.com stated, we need family physicians out there teaching our patients. Why should we allow specialists like cardiothoracic specialist Dr. Oz to be the main spokesperson for medicine? We are in the front lines of medicine, that should be our job. In this day and age, our patients are turning to the Internet for advice. We as family physicians, should be giving it.
We need to be at the forefront of medical advice, not others. We can't expect people to be savvy enough to know good advice from bad. We need to show and teach them. It is time for us to change. Harrison Coerver in his lecture entitled, "The Race For Relevance," states that the majority of chapters still spend more money on postage then technology. In this age, it is time to change. We need to reach out to our patients and members.
While in Kansas City, I began updating the Connecticut Academy of Family Physicians Facebook page and started a twitter account @CTAFPDOC. Mark Schuman, Mary Yokose, our chapter executives, and I will be updating the CAFP twitter and facebook accounts. Now, we just need YOU to follow along.
I finally got to meet AAFP President Dr. Glen Stream last week at the 2012 AAFP NCSC meeting. I know I have said publicly in the past, but I wanted to again praise the Academy for taking the proactive step of embracing social media with a leadership blog, an AAFP President twitter handle, an AAFP President facebook page, and more.
In the video above, you'll see the end of his remarks a the opening session of the NCSC meeting. He announces new membership numbers, the social media efforts of the Academy (love when he says "tweep" above), and the overall goal of increased communication. Family Medicine is definitely an Unstoppable Force. Go #FMRevolution!
Family Medicine Pioneer G. Gayle Stephens, MD spoke at the 2012 American Academy of Family Physicians National Conference of Special Constituencies on May 3, 2012 in Kansas City, MO. I have heard a lot about this icon in the past, especially an essay entitied, "Family Medicine As Counterculture."
Even though this gentleman has given many lectures in the past, I could see (especially since I was sitting in the front row) that he genuinely looked nervous as he climbed the steps to the stage. He poked fun at the start of his talk by calling himself "Moses" and asking rhetorically, "Where did they dig up this old guy?" as the crowd laughed awkwardly.
He read his entire speech. But, as usually happens, speakers find their stride in the last part of the talk. In this case, it was the last eight minutes, which is the video above. The opening quote below was the best of the whole thing and inspired this blog post.
The first job is to give a damn about everything that matters to patients and about what the patient chooses to do or not to do about their condition. I've seen it happen that when the patient refuses medical advice, for those of us who believe strongly in patient autonomy, lose interest in the patient and say the patient should go somewhere else....
If the patient refuses a treatment, like chemotherapy, Dr. Stephens says, "[This choice] is not an ending of the doctor's responsibility, but the beginning of a new phase of patient care." He continues with concept like "Being There," how to "Talk" to patients, "Don't make promises you can't keep," Don't make rotten referrals," and "Stop Whining and Start Resisting." He closed with this ominous quote which made a lot of people think during and after his presentation.
Your turn to become a patient is inevitable. We're all going to be abused by this terrible system eventually. The closer I get, the more scared I become...
Family Medicine cannot look forward without looking back. Not only do I hope we remember Dr. Stephen's story, I hope that we retell it to our friends, our colleagues, and anyone else who will listen. The fundamentals of Family Medicine have not changed, and we cannot forget the pioneers like Dr. Stephens. Without them, Family Medicine would not be where it is today. Thanks Dr. Stephens for continuing to challenge Family Medicine to be Counterculture.
"NCSC has such a special place in my heart and has been pivotal in shaping my career since my first NCSC eleven years ago...."
"As Family Physicians, we have the privilege of hearing people's stories. I'd like to tell you my story about how NCSC helped me find my voice, follow my dream, and discover how diverse Family Physicians really are..."
"NCSC changed an inspired me to make the first step in living the life I dreamed of being the physician I dreamed of making a difference in my patient's lives, my community, and beyond. And that we as Family Physicians can affect change in the Academy and our whole country..."
"This is the family that is NCSC. The family that not only allowed me to grow roots, but spread my wings and fly. I've been honored to be part of the history of NCSC..."
"I know that you will make memories and friendships here that will last a lifetime. I have. I hope that you will too be inspired to dream big and take that enthusiasm back to the people that you serve..."
"I challenge you to keep your eyes on the stars and your feet on the ground, to have radical ideas to lead the Academy and to inspire other Family Physicians. Enjoy the wild ride that you will take over the next few days...."
I also encourage you to check out my exclusive interview with Dr. Yu that was recorded before the 2012 conference on my internet radio show where we talked about her quest to become the 2013 conference chair. You can download the podcast here or listen in the player below. Don't forget to follow me on twitter, "like" the facebook page, and subscribe to my podcast on itunes. Enjoy!
What was the last great meeting or conference that you went to? Do you remember? What was it that inspired you or motivated you? Who were the people that you met? How did it change your professional life? Unfortunately, for most people, a conference is kind of an escape from reality for a few days until you come back to the cubicle and resume work life right where you left off.
This is something that really frustrates me. Last week, I was in Kansas City for a huge Family Medicine advocacy and policy making meeting. I reunited with long time friends, and met new friends. We talked and proposed solutions to what frustrates us about our broken health care system. We pledged to keep in touch and to keep the momentum of advocacy going.
Now what? I wait. I wait and see if people are really going to see if after they "talk the talk," will they "walk the walk." And, don't get me wrong, if nothing happens, it's not like they were lying. It's just that reality too often conflicts with their intentions to change their current professional course.
I've seen this too many times. All this positive emotion and great feelings are generated by an awesome conference, then "The Conference Hangover" wears off and people slip back into their old habits of the status quo and we're back to square one of frustration, feelings of helplessness, and inability to bring about change.
It's hard to believe that this is the last day of the AAFP National Conference of Special Constituencies. My flight leaves in just a few hours, and I wanted to capture some thoughts before I headed to the airport. I have always said that coming back to meetings like NCSC/ALF continue to recharge me and re-emphasize my choice to becoming a Family Physician, and this week's meeting certainly does that. Thanks to the NCSC Leadership Team and to AAFP staff for putting together a great meeting! Here are some random thoughts...
Social Media and Family Medicine presentation: Everyone knows how much fun I have talking about these subjects. I really feel bummed out that I had problems with my video camera and I was not able to record the session. I really appreciate those who tweeted out the presentation. My main points are that Family Physicians need to utilize social media to tell our story and to find community - like the #FMRevolution community.
Social Media Coverage at Meeting: I tried an experiment and recorded some video interviews during the meeting. In the video above, you'll see one of the interviews. The second one is here and the third one is here. I see a lot of potential of doing these type of "person on the street" interviews.
Twitter Coverage At The Meeting: Kirk Ackerson, who is the social media manager of the AAFP, has done a great job of aggregating the tweets using a tool called storify. Check out his 2012 ALF/NCSC coverage here. Also kudos to AAFP Board Member Reid Blackwelder for great coverage of election results. Check out his twitter feed here.
Video recording of Business Sessions: I really appreciate that the AAFP is recording business sessions including Candidate Forum and Elections and the Joint Session Caucus. I hope that the Academy continues to record these type of sessions so that AAFP members can be aware of what's going on and feel engagement in the process.
Candidates being asked questions from Twitter: This year, something very unique was the opportunity for those from twitter to ask candidates questions that are only 140 characters. What I really liked what that, usually, the best questions are just 140 questions so that they get to the point.
There is definitely a different feel and vibe to the NCSC meeting with the addition of social media. It's always exciting watching and talking with those people who are here for the first time. Everyone coming to this meeting have a great story that they bring. With opportunities like this meeting, it is a chance for our stories to come together, find common ground, and make recommendations to improve the health care of our patients! See everyone next year!
Thanks to Dr. Ryan Kaufmann and Dr. Kim Yu who were guests on Family Medicine Rocks Podcast Episode 256 broadcast live this morning. They are candidates for election for the 2013 Conference Chair (or Convener) of the American Academy of Family Physicians National Conference of Special Constituencies. I structured the Q&A with 4 standard questions: 1) Introduce yourself and describe your current practice situation, 2) Why do you love Family Medicine?, 3) Why do you love the NCSC meeting?, 4) Why do you want to be the 2013 NCSC Conference Chair/Convener?
Also in this show, I played some snippets from the band Revolve who will be playing at the meeting here tomorrow. At the end of the show, I share some information of what I will talk about during my Social Media and Family Medicine presentation this afternoon. I invite you to follow the meeting at one or more of the following hashtags for the meeting: #ncsc12, #aafpncsc (official hashtag), #aafpalf (official hashtag). I have some big social media plans for the meeting!
You can listen to the entire show on the player below. You can also download the mp3 audiofile here or on the link below. I also invite you to "Like" the Facebook page for the show, to follow me on twitter, and to check out my youtube page which has some of my TV interviews with local TV news. Also check me out on Linked-In. Thanks for checking out the website!
Thanks to Dr. Jay Lee, 2012 NCSC Conference Chair/Convener, for being on Family Medicine Rocks Episode 255 to talk about this week's meeting (download episode here or below). This was actually recorded last weekend and as we recorded it was 7am his time and he was talking to me from his car because he did not want to wake up his children at that hour. How cool is that?
We started with talking about what First Time Attendees would expect from the meeting, and he also shared when he first became active in organized medicine, basically with the California Academy of Family Physicians. We then talked about the social media angle to the meeting, and we ended up with discussion of the NCSC Keynote speaker Dr. Gayle Stephens.
During the course of the show, I made my HUGE announcement, which is in the video above. I was able to record interviews with the two people who are running for the 2013 NCSC Convener position, which for the first time ever - is an elected position this year. Those two interviews will be broadcast live on Wednesday, May 2, 2012 at 10amET/9amCT during Family Medicine Rocks Episode 256.
Finally, I just wanted to thank everyone who have listened to the show and who have supported the show leading up to this week's meeting. At the end of Ep 255, I talk about why I did this. I've been getting a lot of questions about why I did this. And, at the end of the show, I explain that i wanted to show what just one person could do with this stuff. Just imagine of more people were involved recording podcasts, recording videos, writing blog posts, etc. Next stop, Kansas City!
