Continue AAFP's Prime Pathway for Special Constituency Members

Last fall, the AAFP Congress of Delegates overwhelmingly adopted measures to safeguard the representation of special constituencies within the AAFP, which is more significant than many members may know.

Delegates voted to continue the National Conference of Special Constituencies, or NCSC, and they also decided to extend until 2015 six delegate and six alternate delegate seats in the Congress that are reserved for representatives from four of the AAFP's special constituency groups -- women; minorities; international medical graduates, or IMGs; and members interested in gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender issues. Those seats had been scheduled to sunset next year. (The Academy's fifth constituency group, new physicians, has two delegate and two alternate seats in the Congress with no sunset date.)

The Congress made these decisions in the wake of steps taken by the AAFP Board of Directors to restructure the Academy (Members Only) to trim expenses and balance the budget. Those cost-cutting steps included eliminating the AAFP's travel reimbursement for NCSC attendees who are official chapter representatives -- a step that engendered fear among special constituency members that the NCSC itself might eventually be eliminated.

Why was it so important for delegates to protect special constituency representation in the Academy's Congress of Delegates? Because the Academy can be strengthened by more thoroughly understanding the issues faced by an increasingly diverse America and an increasingly diverse family medicine field. The best way to nurture that understanding is through maintaining -- or even enhancing -- the key pathway used by members of these constituencies to put their issues before the Congress of Delegates.

The NCSC is the most direct way for special constituency members to send resolutions to the Congress. Having the constituency seats in the Congress means there's someone there to explain the issues and ensure serious consideration. The resolutions have more "bite" because the constituency delegates have voting power in the Congress.

Furthermore, participating in the NCSC process is helpful background for any constituency member who decides to campaign for a leadership position within the AAFP.

I know firsthand about the benefits of the NCSC pathway because I've walked it myself. My story is a good example of how the NCSC can jump-start a member's involvement in Academy leadership.

Close to 10 years ago, my constituent chapter, the Michigan AFP, asked me if I wanted to represent the chapter's IMGs at the NCSC. I had been active at the chapter level, but I didn't know much about this national conference. Intrigued, I agreed to go.

It was an eye-opening experience! It was amazing to be in that rich environment -- to interact with the AAFP's president and Board members, and to learn firsthand how the AAFP works and what it does on behalf of its members.

Even though it was my first NCSC, I was encouraged to run for a special constituency alternate delegate position in the Congress of Delegates. I pulled my curriculum vitae together on the spot and went through the process. Although I didn't win, I learned a lot about running for a position. I also networked with colleagues from all over the country and participated in debating and voting on resolutions to the AAFP Congress. I returned home energized and more confident of my own abilities, spreading the word to members and nonmembers alike about the wonderful things the AAFP was doing.

The chapter asked me to represent IMGs again the next year. That time, I won an alternate delegate position in the Congress, moving up to delegate the following year.

My AAFP participation broadened when I was appointed to an Academy committee in 2004. I'm now in my second term on the Commission on Membership and Member Services. In addition, I'm the Michigan chapter's president this year, as well as the convener for the 2009 NCSC.

The skills and confidence developed through my AAFP experience have helped my personal career, as well. Currently, I'm in charge of a major clinic in a health care system, and I have opportunities to advance further.

The most wonderful thing is that I'm not unique. Many in AAFP leadership positions -- present and past, appointed and elected -- have walked the NCSC path themselves.

As convener of the 2009 NCSC, I want to do everything possible to make attendance at this year's conference the best ever. It's a critical year for the meeting, because although the Congress supported continuation of the NCSC, it chose to refer, not to adopt, another resolution that would have reinstated AAFP's travel expense reimbursement for chapter representatives to the NCSC.

If attendance at the NCSC drops substantially this year as a result, I'm concerned that the NCSC will eventually go on the Academy chopping block. And that would be a tragedy -- not just for special constituency members, but for the AAFP, as well.