LEAWOOD, Kan. — The American Academy of Family Physicians’ (AAFP) will hold the first-ever National Ambulatory Primary Care Research and Education Conference on Patient Safety. The AAFP’s National Network for Family Practice and Primary Care Research received a $50,000 grant from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) to convene the conference September 18-19 in Chicago.
The conference provides a forum for primary care educators, researchers and policy makers to share information that will help create safe environments for patients, staff and providers.
A packed agenda is planned for this conference. Leading primary care researchers and educators will present their current work and the immediate implications of their work for improving patient safety.
AAFP Holds First Conference on Patient Safety
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, September 11, 2003
Contact:
Adam Lee
American Academy of Family Physicians
(800) 274-2237 Ext. 5221
alee@aafp.org
- Helen Burstin, M.D., MPH, AHRQ Director of the Center for Primary Care Research is the keynote speaker. She will provide an overview of the AHRQ perspective on ambulatory primary care patient safety;
- Gerald Hickson, M.D., Vanderbilt University vice chairman of Pediatrics, will review the patient’s role;
- David Bates, M.D., MSc, medical director of Clinical and Quality Analysis for Partners Health Care, will discuss the research challenges; and
- Joseph Scherger, M.D., M.P.H., clinical professor, Department of Family and Preventive Medicine, University of California, San Diego, will identify the education challenges in ambulatory primary care patient safety.
This conference is sponsored by the Primary Care Organizations Consortium, the AAFP Developmental Center for Research and Evaluation in Patient Safety in Primary Care, the National Patient Safety Foundation, and the Department of Family Medicine, Pritzker School of Medicine — The University of Chicago, with assistance from the Medical Group Management Association.
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Founded in 1947, the AAFP represents 105,900 physicians and medical students nationwide. It is the only medical society devoted solely to primary care.
Approximately one in four of all office visits are made to family physicians. That is 240 million office visits each year — nearly 87 million more than the next largest medical specialty. Today, family physicians provide more care for America’s underserved and rural populations than any other medical specialty. Family medicine’s cornerstone is an ongoing, personal patient-physician relationship focused on integrated care.
To learn more about the specialty of family medicine, the AAFP's positions on issues and clinical care, and for downloadable multi-media highlighting family medicine, visit www.aafp.org/media. For information about health care, health conditions and wellness, please visit the AAFP’s award-winning consumer Web site, www.FamilyDoctor.org.
