Student, resident delegates address family medicine issues, elect leaders at FUTURE

Family medicine residents and medical students from across the country elected new leaders and wrote, debated and adopted resolutions during the FUTURE conference July 30–August 1 in Kansas City, Missouri.

Student and resident delegates considered nearly 40 resolutions in their respective congresses and a joint session. The AAFP Board of Directors will review the resolutions that were adopted and assign commissions to take up these issues. Read on for resolution highlights, and review the final reports from the student, resident and joint reference committees for full details.

Joint reference committee

Protected time for resident advocacy

Not surprisingly, student and resident delegates attending a national advocacy event unanimously supported a resolution that called on the Academy to support protected time for residents attending advocacy events.

Specifically, delegates adopted a substitute resolution that asked the AAFP to support resident participation in organized physician advocacy activities, which should be recognized as educational experiences eligible for protected educational time. The resolution also asked the Academy to support resident participation through educational or professional development leave, when possible, rather than vacation or personal leave. The resolution also urged the Academy to encourage family medicine residency programs to establish protected time for advocacy education and legislative engagement.

Resident reference committee

Preserving access to rural health

The resident congress adopted multiple resolutions related to rural health, including an extracted resolution that called for the AAFP to add one student and one resident member to its Rural Health Advisory Committee.

Resident delegates also adopted an extracted and amended resolution that called on the AAFP to collaborate with the American Hospital Association, CMS, the Joint Commission and other stakeholders to “develop, promote and advocate for structured, competency-based privileging policies that preserve access to comprehensive family medicine services in rural and underserved communities.”

AI transparency for patients

The student and resident congresses both adopted resolutions related to artificial intelligence. The resolution adopted by residents related to transparency. Specifically, it called on the AAFP to advocate that developers of consumer facing generative AI, powered by large language models, include a disclaimer informing users that “health-related responses are general knowledge and should not be taken as medical advice.” The resolution also noted that users of such models should be encouraged to seek answers from health care professionals.

Student reference committee

Expanding student leadership opportunities

Student delegates adopted a substitute resolution that would expand leadership opportunities by adding additional student liaison positions with groups such as the Association of Native American Medical Students with responsibilities similar to those of the AAFP’s existing student liaisons to the Latino Medical Student Association and the Student National Medical Association.

Increased access to methadone treatment

Student delegates also adopted an extracted resolution that called on the AAFP to support federal and state efforts that would enable family physicians to prescribe methadone treatment for opioid use disorder in office-based settings, outside of opioid treatment programs. It also asked the Academy to support state and federal efforts to enable community pharmacies to dispense methadone treatment.

The reference committee heard testimony entirely in support of the resolution. Delegates cited lack of access to necessary and appropriate resources to treat opioid use disorders, specifically in rural areas where methadone is highly inaccessible.

New resident and student leaders

Residents and students at FUTURE also elected their peers to leadership positions:

Resident member, AAFP Board of Directors: Alexandra Greenberg, MD, MSPH, MS, LGBTQ+ Medicine Fellow at Mount Sinai Health System, New York. (Subject to approval at the Congress of Delegates.)

• Resident chair, FUTURE 2027: Claire Namboodri, MD, Novant Health New Hanover Regional Medical Center Program, Wilmington, North Carolina
  
  
• Resident alternate delegates to the Congress of Delegates: Caleb Duncan, DO, Charleston Area Medical Center/CAMC Institute for Academic Medicine Program, Charleston, West Virginia; and Disha Bhargava, MD, Corewell Health—Grand Rapids/Michigan State University

• Student member, AAFP Board of Directors: Lauren Hutchinson, Idaho College of Osteopathic Medicine. (Subject to approval at the Congress of Delegates.)

• Student chair, FUTURE 2027: Sarah Gonzales, American University of Antigua College of Medicine
• Student alternate delegates to the Congress of Delegates: Lily Luu, University of Washington School of Medicine; and Mary Brown, East Tennessee State University James H. Quillen College of Medicine

Members such as those elected at FUTURE help shape the Academy’s policies and positions on issues that affect family medicine. Note that many other student and resident leadership roles are filled by appointment. Learn how you can take part in AAFP governance and choose a path to get involved at the national level or contact your chapter for other opportunities.

FUTURE drew more than 5,000 attendees, including 1,545 students and 1,390 residents. The 2027 event is scheduled for July 30–August 1 in Kansas City, Missouri.