Constituencies gear up for 10th meeting
As AAFP's special constituencies -- women, minority and new physicians -- plan their 10th annual meeting, they're celebrating.
"We've made so much progress," said Maggie Black-burn, M.D., of Harpersfield, N.Y., convener of the 1999 National Conference of Women, Minority and New Physicians.
"Formerly, women and minorities were underrepresented," she said. "Now, we have a lot more women in leadership, and more minorities. The conference feeds leaders into the AAFP and chapters."
NCWMNP provides a forum for policy-making, sending resolutions to the AAFP Board and Congress of Delegates. At NCWMNP's urging, the Congress has seated delegates representing women, minority and new physicians since 1993.
The Committee on Special Constituencies addresses the concerns of the three groups, plus issues relating to international medical graduates and to gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender populations.
"Many of our issues overlap," said Blackburn. For example, many new physicians work in rural areas, and many minorities practice in inner cities, with both sets of patients often underserved.
The 10th NCWMNP will be April 29-May 1 in Kansas City, Mo.
FP Report is published by the AAFP News Department. Copyright © 1999 by American Academy of Family Physicians.
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