President's Message
NAPCRG Awarded Generous Financial Support for Key Initiatives
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In May 2024, NAPCRG was honored to receive two substantial financial awards totaling $959,000 from the American Board of Family Medicine (ABFM) Foundation. These awards are aimed at advancing pivotal primary care research initiatives.
The first award, amounting to $400,000 over four years, is designated for the creation of a comprehensive NAPCRG training program for primary care researchers. This initiative will involve curating and supporting existing training programs, as well as developing new ones. As outlined in the National Strategic Plan for Primary Care Research, the objectives include developing a database of research training programs, enhancing and expanding research pathways for medical students, residents, and physicians, promoting a culture of curiosity, and utilizing distinct methodologies. The ultimate goals are to engage more primary care providers in practice improvement through research, increase the impact of primary care research, offer year-round workforce training opportunities (beyond the NAPCRG Annual Meeting), and create a new source of revenue for NAPCRG. Leading this initiative is Hannah Juarez, LSCSW, who began her role as part-time Training and Program Project Manager at NAPCRG on July 1.
The second award, totaling $559,000, supports the hiring of a full-time Research Coordinator. This individual will provide administrative responsibility for advancing the fifteen objectives of the National Family Medicine Research Strategic Plan over its five-year duration. The journey to this strategic plan culminated in the Family Medicine Research Summit, held on October 30, 2023, at the Hilton San Francisco Union Square Hotel during the 51st NAPCRG Annual Meeting. The Summit marked a historic day for family medicine, gathering over 140 visionaries, innovators, and leaders in the field to develop a research-focused strategic plan for the discipline in the United States.
Finalized in August 2023, the National Family Medicine Strategic Plan for Research includes three strategic priorities: Pathways/Mentorship, Funding and Advocacy, and Infrastructure. Each priority has one goal and five objectives, making a total of 15 objectives. The ABFM Foundation’s funding enables the hiring of a Research Coordinator who will work closely with Irfan Asif, MD, the lead champion for the plan's implementation. The Research Coordinator position has recently been posted, with interviews and hiring decisions expected in the coming weeks.
These generous awards from the ABFM Foundation represent a significant step forward in enhancing primary care research and training, underscoring the commitment to advancing the discipline of family medicine.
Dr. Richelle Koopman, MD, MS, NAPCRG President and Tom Vansaghi, PhD, NAPCRG Executive Director
Meetings and Events
Join us for PaCE Tea-Time
Our next Tea-Time will be Tuesday, September 10th at 12:00pm CT. We will welcome guest speakers Anna Templeton and Susan Lowe as they share about patient engagement in large, data-focused networks. Register today!
52nd Annual Meeting: November 20-24, Québec
Register today for the Annual Meeting! Don't miss out on the opportunity to take advantage of our early bird rates and secure a spot in a Pre-conference Workshop.
You can stay up to date on all information pertaining to events at NAPCRG through emails, our website, NAPCRG Connect, and social media.
Opportunities to Engage:
Research, Scholarship, Leadership
Bring a Patient Partner to the 2024 NAPCRG Annual Meeting!
Do you have patients or community members as part of your research team? The Patient and Clinician Engagement (PaCE) committee encourages research teams to bring these valuable members to the Annual Meeting. Patient and community partners can provide valuable insights and feedback to researchers, help to ensure that research is relevant to patients' needs, and advocate for the inclusion of patients in research. Find out more about NAPCRG's special rates for patient partners and register for the PaCE Pre-conference Workshop here. We hope to see you and your patient partner at NAPCRG 2024!
Grant Generating Project
The Grant Generating Project (GGP) Fellowship is now accepting applications for 2024-2025. This year-long fellowship gives you the opportunity to learn to write successful research grants while connecting with other family medicine researchers. The deadline to apply is August 29th at 11:59pm CT. Apply here!
Updates from NAPCRG
Meet our new Deputy Executive Director
If you have been around NAPCRG for a while, you have most likely met Leyla Haddad. She is the wearer of all hats here. Leyla started her corporate accounting and finance career in Southern
California before moving to non-profit work. After being in Los Angeles for 20 years, she returned home to Kansas City to be closer to her family, which is when she connected with NAPCRG. Her background in finance and non-profit management landed her at NAPCRG in 2019 as Manager, Operations and Program Administration. She has overseen operations ranging from organization-wide initiatives to specific programs and conferences, ensuring seamless execution and strategic alignment. Viv Ramsden selected and recognized her with the President's Award in 2023 for outstanding and irreplaceable contributions to NAPCRG. Leyla is an effective leader who helps manage and guide our staff to be their best. Because of her dedication to optimizing NAPCRG to its fullest potential, Leyla was promoted to Deputy Executive Director of NAPCRG, effective July 1, 2024.
Other Team Updates
NAPCRG is also excited to announce that we have welcomed Hannah Juarez to our team as Training Program Project Manager. Hannah will be leading the creation of our online education program. Welcome, Hannah! Our last team update is that Natalie Gross has joined the team full-time. She has been with NAPCRG for two year and this transition will allow her to provide additional support to our members and team. We are excited to have her full-time!
Leyla, Hannah, Natalie and the rest of our team look forward to seeing our members at the Annual Meeting this November.
Other News
Shape HEAL Research Priorities
The NIH HEAL Initiative wants to hear from you! HEAL is seeking public input to help shape strategic research priorities that will guide the initiative’s future efforts to find scientific solutions to the public health crises of overdose, opioid use disorder, and chronic pain. Submit feedback by July 31, 2024, to HEALquestion@od.nih.gov with “HEAL RFI” in the subject line.
Association of American Physicians (AAP)
Within the past two years, the AAP has welcomed their first two family physician-scientists to their prestigious, elected society. These two physician-scientists are members of NAPCRG and are seeking to nominate another family physician-scientist in this upcoming nomination cycle. You can find more information about the nomination process here. If you are interested or know someone else who would be a good candidate, please contact our staff who can connect you with the appropriate individuals.
World leaders unite to embed social participation in health systems
Antoine Boivin, Dani Mothci, Vincent Dumez, Farin Shore, Amanda Bok
We encourage all to take a moment and read a recent BMJ editorial that supports recent WHO Resolution to embed social participation in health systems. You can find the full editorial here. NAPCRG implemented Responsible Research into the fabric of our organization in 1998, when Dr. Ann Macauley was our President. This led to us having a long-term engagement of Patient Partners from the US and Canada on our Board of Directors and the more recent movement of the PaCE Committee. The wisdom of our previous leadership has continued to shape our commitment to patients to this day.
Career and Training Opportunities
Career Opportunities
Check out open job positions here, and more information is available for institutions interested in advertising available positions to our members.
Mayo Clinic Family Medicine Physician - Rochester, MN
The Department of Family Medicine at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN, invites board certified or board eligible Family Physicians to apply for a full-time position. The Department of Family Medicine is dedicated to providing reliable, high value, patient-centered, evidence-based medicine in an innovative clinical environment that is supported by education and research. Family Medicine physicians and allied health staff practice in a team environment and serve a large and diverse community at four practice sites. Learn more here!
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