Do you donate your services or medical supplies to a local clinic for the poor? Have you ever wanted to help build or repair a home for an elderly person in need?
Recognizing that many family physicians are involved--or want to be involved--in charitable activities outside of their medical practices, the Academy has set aside a special week during the year-long celebration of its 50th anniversary in 1997. Family Physicians Care for America Week--Oct. 20-26, 1997--will commemorate FPs' commitment to building better, healthier communities.
Key to the success of the project is your early involvement. The Academy asks that you make plans to work with your colleagues and community in donating services, planting trees, collecting food for the needy, or conducting another volunteer project.
To help you get started, the AAFP has developed a participant's kit including basic project start-up information, ideas for community projects, and materials to assist you in promoting your project. The kit has been mailed to constituent chapter presidents and executives; you may want to contact them about developing a project. Or you may want to initiate a project on your own or with other family physicians.
Regardless of the type or size of the project you'd like to undertake for Family Physicians Care for America Week, the AAFP wants to hear about your plans and form a partnership with you. A toll-free hotline--(800) 274-2237, ext. 4221--has been established in case you have questions or want to share your ideas. Participants' kits are available free of charge through the AAFP Order Department. To order, call (800) 944-0000 and ask for item #R046.
The production of the kit is supported in part by an educational grant from Zeneca Pharmaceuticals.
In addition to Family Physicians Care for America Week, the Academy has several projects in the works to celebrate its anniversary. A commemorative book will chronicle the history of family practice from the days of Hippocrates and provide a brief history of the Academy. The 128-page book will feature vignettes of a diverse selection of today's family physicians, illustrating the miracles they perform every day.
Furthermore, participants at the AAFPScientific Assembly Sept. 18-21, 1997, in Chicago will mark the 50th anniversary at a gala birthday celebration at the United Center, home of the Chicago Bulls and Blackhawks.
FP Report, July 1996 headlines
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