2017 Family Medicine Midwest Conference

The following blog post was written by U of M Department of Family Medicine faculty Andrew Slattengren, DO, chair of the Family Medicine Midwest Foundation and presenter at this year's conference.

On October 6-8, over 350 physicians, residents, and medical students gathered at Hilton O’Hare in Rosemont, Illinois for the 2017 Family Medicine Midwest Conference.

The event combined scholarly work and research presentations, community-based practice and best practice sharing, and promoted cooperative and collaborative health care innovation. There was a residency and employment fair, along with workshops, poster presentations, and pre-conference sessions.

The University of Minnesota Department of Family Medicine and Community Health and other individuals contributed to provide scholarships for medical students. Because of these efforts, 18 University of Minnesota medical students were able to attend the conference.

University of Minnesota medical student
Danielle Francen presents her poster titled
"Implementation of Advance Care Planning
in a Rural Healthcare System"

“My name is Danielle Francen and I am a current fourth-year medical student at the University of Minnesota who received a scholarship from your group to attend the Family Medicine Midwest Conference. Thank you so much for the opportunity to attend the conference--it was both an educational and inspiring experience. I had the opportunity to attend many educational sessions while I was there. Given my interest in women’s health, I specifically enjoyed lectures on abortion care, water births, contraception, and perineal suturing techniques. I also attended a lecture on behavioral interviewing which I am sure will be helpful as I begin the interview process for residency.

Additionally, I was fortunate to have been selected to present a poster on my Advance Care Planning project that I worked on for nine months as a student in the Rural Physician’s Associate Program. It was really amazing to share my work with students from across the midwest and hear them voice their interest in doing something similar in their own area.

As students, we are so grateful for your scholarship donation to help make trips like these possible, especially given the financial barriers that we face as fourth-year medical students. It was so helpful to be surrounded by like-minded individuals and to also learn from their experiences. Thank you again for the opportunity to attend the conference, I hope many more students can also attend in the future.” 

​Danielle Francen

University of Minnesota Medical School MD candidate, class of 2018

In addition to medical students, 11 other University of Minnesota resident physicians, family physicians, and other medical professionals attended. University of Minnesota physicians, residents, and students presented a total of nine educational sessions during the conference, including an emotional and motivating plenary talk “The #FMRevolution of Today” by North Memorial faculty Renée Crichlow, MD. This conference is an excellent venue to demonstrate the amazing works of family physicians in Minnesota.

The 2018 conference will take place in Madison, Wisconsin on November 9-11. The 2019 conference will take place in Chicago again and the 2020 conference will take place at the University of Minnesota. Future dates are to be determined.   

The Family Medicine Midwest (FMM) Foundation launched in 2012 with a core mission of identifying and supporting students interested in Family Medicine. It is committed to communicating the value of family medicine to practicing colleagues, future colleagues, and the public. Andrew Slattengren DO, faculty at North Memorial Family Medicine Residency is the chair of the FMM Foundation.

View photos from this year's conference

Family Medicine Midwest 2017 Presentations – University of Minnesota

• Discussing Fertility Awareness Based Methods of Family Planning: The Patient Experience
• Stephanie Pickthorn, MS3, University of Minnesota
• Mary Kim, MS1 Georgetown University School of Medicine
• Marguerite Duane, MD, MHA, FAAFP Adjunct Associate Professor, Georgetown University

• Evaluation of physician satisfaction of a standardized inter-professional care model for chronic pain in family medicine residency clinics
• Andrew H Slattengren, DO, North Memorial faculty
• Eva Pesch, MD, recent North Memorial graduate
• Nelli Thomas, MD, recent North Memorial graduate
• Megan Keuler, MD, MPH, third-year North Memorial resident

Family Medicine Midwest 2017 Poster Presentations – University of Minnesota

• Discussing Childhood Overweight and Obesity with Parents: a Provider's Perspective
• Melissa Pavek, MD, third-year North Memorial resident
• Huiying Guo, MD, third-year North Memorial resident

• Implementation of Advance Care Planning in a Rural Healthcare System
• Danielle Francen, MS4, University of Minnesota

• Qualitative Needs Assessment on Cervical and Breast Cancer Screening in North Minneapolis
• Caitlin Fujisawa, MPH, MS4, University of Minnesota

• Review of Clinic Documentation of Advance Care Directives/POLST forms
• Lucas Labine, MS4, University of Minnesota

• Lakewood Health System Community Healthcare Needs Assessment Regarding Obesity
• Kyle Lau, MS2, University of Minnesota - Duluth

• Power to Quit II: A Randomized Clinical Trial To Enhance Smoking and Alcohol Cessation Among Homeless Adults
• Thulasee Jose, MD, MPH 2019 Candidate - University of Minnesota School of Public Health

Family Medicine Midwest 2017 Plenary Presentations – University of Minnesota

• The #FMRevolution of Today
• Renée Crichlow, MD, FAAFP - University of Minnesota Dept. of Family Medicine and Associate Director, North Memorial Family Medicine Residency Program