University of Minnesota at Family Medicine Midwest 2014

Family Medicine Midwest held its third annual conference last week in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

The conference attracted 450 medical students, family medicine residents and faculty, and other health care professionals from across the Midwest.

What is Family Medicine Midwest?

The Family Medicine Midwest Foundation was designed to help identify and support Midwest students interested in family medicine.

Member organizations include Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, and Minnesota academies of family physicians as well as medical schools and family medicine residences from across the Midwest.

The foundation sponsors an annual conference, with the following aims:

• Showcase Midwest family medicine residencies
• Provide a forum for scholarly work and research presentations
• Highlight community-based practice and best practice sharing
• Promote cooperative and collaborative health care innovation

UMN Family Medicine at the Conference

PLANNING
University of Minnesota family medicine faculty Andrew Slattengren, DO, is vice chair of the Family Medicine Midwest Foundation. He also served as chair of the host/planning committee for the 2014 conference. The host committee included University of Minnesota family medicine faculty Patricia Adam, MD, MSPH, John McCabe, MD, Jacob Prunuske, MD, MSPH, and Angela Smithson, MD, MPH.

Andrew Slattengren, DO, left, addresses conference attendees.

PRE-CONFERENCE
Pre-conference events covered a variety of medical topics, including affordable medications and global health. University of Minnesota family medicine faculty Jody Lounsbery, PharmD, Jean Moon, PharmD, and Shailey Prasad, MD, MPH, were among pre-conference presenters.

OPENING PLENARY
The opening plenary was a Hippocrates Cafe performance, "The Essence of Family Medicine." Hippocrates Cafe productions use professional actors and musicians to explore complex health care topics through story and song. University of Minnesota family medicine faculty and Hippocrates Cafe creator Jon Hallberg, MD, hosts each show, providing context for performances.
(More about Hippocrates Cafe.)

Hippocrates Cafe performer T. Mychael Rambo sings.

AWARDS & HONORS
Awards were presented to faculty and students demonstrating significant achievement or noticeable impact in the field of family medicine.

The Mid-Career Faculty Achievement Award was given to University of Minnesota family medicine faculty Reneé Crichlow, MD, for her innovative teaching methods, community activism, and commitment to research. Of Crichlow's numerous contributions to the field, her unique health career mentorship program, which empowers underserved youth to see a career in health care as an attainable pursuit, is among the most inspiring.

Reneé Crichlow, MD

The Power to Change Our World Award was given to University of Minnesota medical student Melissa McCoy for her global approach to health care. McCoy has spent time locally and abroad caring for underserved communities and learning about international health.

Right, Melissa McCoy

The conference also gave out I3 (Inspiring, Innovative, or Invigorating) awards, which were "pop-up" awards; any conference attendee could nominate another attendee for something inspiring, innovative, and invigorating. Crichlow and University of Minnesota medical student Peter Meyers were among I3 awardees. Meyers is a clinical innovation fellow with the grassroots organization Primary Care Progress.

SPEED DATE THE SPECIALTY
The conference held a speed date the specialty lunch for student attendees to learn more about different aspects of family medicine. Topics included addiction medicine, global health, health policy, motivational interviewing, residency interviewing, transgender health, women's health, and beyond.

University of Minnesota family medicine faculty Jerica Berge, PhD, MPH, Nicole Chaisson, MD, MPH, Reneé Crichlow, MD, Lauren Giammar, MD, Bob Levy, MD, Carrie Link, MD, John McCabe, MD, Shailey Prasad, MD, MPH, and Carolyn Torkelson, MD, MS, were among faculty  speed daters.

John McCabe, MD (in yellow), with student speed daters.

PRESENTATIONS/POSTERS
A number of University of Minnesota family medicine faculty and residents as well as University of Minnesota medical students presented on topics in family medicine and primary care.

Nicole Chaisson, MD, MPH, discusses stigmas in family medicine.

Presenters included faculty Patricia Adam, MD, MSPH, Ben Baechler, MD, Nicole Chaisson, MD, MPH, Reneé Crichlow, MD, Alan Johns, MD, MEd, Bob Levy, MD, Carrie Link, MD, Diane Madlon-Kay, MD, MS, Laura Miller, MD, Tanner Nissly, DO, Jacob Prunuske MD, MPH, Andrew Slattengren, DO, and Ruth Westra, DO, MPH; and residents Naveen Anantha, MBBS, Camille DeLisi, DO, Rachel Franchi-Winters, DO, Betsy Gilbertson, MD, Amanda Hinrichs, DO, Andrew Houghton, MD, Timothy Kufahl, MD, MS, Kevin Manzel, DO, Kristina Schultz, DO, Adalberto Torres, MD, Cora Walsh, MD, Luke Widstrom, DO, and Sufian Zayed, MD.

Topics included childhood vaccinations, collaborative care, community engagement, end-of-life care, global health, mentorship, osteopathic manipulation, patient satisfaction, prenatal care, public health, stigma in family medicine, and beyond.

EXHIBIT HALL
All eight University of Minnesota family medicine residency programs exhibited at the conference.

University of Minnesota family medicine booth space.

PHOTOS
Check out our conference photo album at z.umn.edu/fmmidwestphotos14.

See You Next Year

Next year's conference will be  held October 9-11 in Rosemont, Illinois. Get details at www.iafp.com/fmm.