AAFP Invests Millions in Practice Resource Center

The AAFP Board of Directors -- believing strongly that members need tools and resources to help move their practices into the future -- recently approved about $8 million to create a new model practice resource center that will open in early 2005.

The initial focus of the center will be to implement and evaluate a national demonstration project that would transform up to 20 family medicine practices to the new model of care advocated in the Future of Family Medicine project report.

"This is a critical investment by the Academy in the future of our discipline — and it's an important and necessary step for our members," said Academy EVP Douglas Henley, M.D. "This center will seek to validate the new model of family medicine as proposed by the Future of Family Medicine report by testing the model in the real world of family physician offices."

Family medicine practices that participate in the two-year demonstration project -- expected to launch in September 2005 -- will implement all of the new model elements, then evaluate their experiences to determine the model’s impact on their practices.

“Members want proof that the new model will enhance patient care and satisfaction, improve efficiency and quality of care, and increase practice revenues,” said AAFP Board Chair Michael Fleming, M.D., of Shreveport, La.

In 2006, the resource center is expected to expand its operations to provide products and services that will enable additional small- and medium-size family medicine practices to implement the new model of care.

The final report of FFM’s Task Force 6, which studied the financial viability of the new model of care, is at the Annals of Family Medicine Web site.