October 2000 • Post-Assembly Edition • Dallas
New physicians, international medical graduates get more clout
"The AAFP is missing the perspective of over 30 percent of its active members -- new physicians," Julie Wood, M.D., said.
The Congress of Delegates voted Sept. 19 for new physicians to have a Board seat and international medical graduates to have delegate status.
Bylaws amendments for the new positions will be prepared for the 2001 Congress.
New physicians. Members in practice fewer than seven years are considered new physicians.
The vote on the Board position followed the advice of (then) President-elect Richard Roberts, M.D., J.D., of Madison, Wis., in his address. "Like most of you," he told the delegates, "I climbed the leadership ladder one rung at a time. I do not believe someone else's gain necessarily results in my loss. We all gain by having a more representative Board."
New physician delegate Julie Wood, M.D., of Macon, Mo., told a reference committee that, at any given time, many constituencies lack Board representation. "However, the AAFP is currently missing the perspective of over 30 percent of its active membership -- the new physicians," said Wood. "Everyone (in AAFP) was, is or will be a new physician."
One of the few to oppose the new physicians' seat, delegate Charles White Sr., M.D., of Lexington, Tenn., told the Congress, "I rise at risk of life and limb, awash in a sea of loneliness. I'm against slotted seats. We lose these people to our state chapters when they come on the national Board."
Rebutting him, Wood said, "This position is not designed as a fast track to avoid state leadership. This supplements state leadership." Delegates backed the new physicians' seat in a voice vote, reversing votes in recent years.
IMGs. An AAFP survey indicates 9 percent of members are IMGs, and delegates said IMGs constitute 16 percent of active members.
"Because of overt and covert discrimination, IMGs suffer inequities in licensure and entry into medical groups," Virgilio Licona, M.D., of Littleton, Colo., convener of the 2001 National Conference of Special Constituencies, said at a reference committee hearing.
"If our patients could come here and speak, you'd see lots of our IMGs are serving in underserved areas," Abdul Nayeem, M.D., of Laurel, Md., a member of the Commission on CME, said.
Viviana Martinez Bianchi, M.D., of Muscatine, Iowa, alternate delegate for minority physicians, told the committee, "I'm an IMG, proudly trained in Argentina. We're submitted to criteria U.S.-trained physicians aren't."
On the floor of the Congress, Bianchi asked, "Do you need to be in a health professional shortage area to hire Maria, a wonderful candidate from Costa Rica who graduated from a fine residency program? Allowing IMGs to bring their issues forward to this floor will help the Academy grow in understanding of a difficult and poorly known reality."
The vote on IMG delegates, a standing vote, was 82-35.
FP Report is published by the AAFP News Department.
Copyright © 2000 by American Academy of Family Physicians.
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