Award-winning family medicine resident improves training for fellow learners
Feb. 11, 2026, David Mitchell — As a first-year family medicine resident, Shana-Kay Lambert-Johnson, MD, prepared for her newborn rotation with a sense of dread.
“We had a newborn rotation at a different hospital system and it was notoriously the most difficult rotation,” said Lambert-Johnson, now a chief resident at Medical City Fort Worth. “I went in fully expecting the worst, but it turned out to be one of my favorite rotations in my first year. I thought, ‘This doesn’t have to be a scary thing.’ I created a step-by-step guide to make the rotation easier because I didn’t want our first-years to have this perpetual fear of it. I want our residents to focus on enjoying it and learning from it. It’s a more challenging rotation, but it's also very rewarding.”
A pragmatic approach to problem solving has served Lambert-Johnson well. Last fall she was one of 12 residents recognized by the AAFP with the Award for Excellence in Graduate Medical Education.
Elevating family medicine training
As a second-year resident, Lambert-Johnson developed a family medicine clinic guide for medical students.
“When you are coming from the classroom to clinic, you’re wondering where do you fit in, and do you have enough experience to contribute?” she said, “and they totally do. This guide tells them how to be an effective team member.”
What started as a simple Word document has evolved into an interactive, digital resource.
“I’m happy it was helpful,” Lambert-Johnson said. “I want to promote family medicine as a specialty. Even if a student decides not to go into family medicine, they can still have a good experience, see the value of our specialty and have respect for it.”
Reducing medical errors and improving outcomes
Lambert-Johnson also was the resident lead on a multidisciplinary team during her second year for a medication best practices initiative focused on improving patient outcomes and reducing errors.
“I gave presentations to attendings who were 20 years into their practice and the chief medical officer for our clinic,” she said. “They were so receptive, and I felt the change and impact that residents can have. That was amazing. I felt seen and heard.”
Practical tips from a GME Award-winner who came full circle
Thinking about applying for the AAFP’s Award for Excellence in Graduate Medical Education? Former GME Award winner Astrud Villareal, MD, FAAFP—who now serves on the commission that selects the winners—offers practical tips on acing your application and reflects on how the recognition set her up for success in family medicine.
Research leads to community health education
During that same academic year, Lambert-Johnson joined a project that conducted a needs-based assessment and created educational sessions for nurses in more than 30 north Texas school districts. She continued her involvement in the project this year and co-created a lecture series that has been attended by more than 1,000 school nurses.
Lambert-Johnson also helped develop a health systems management curriculum, a wellness curriculum and a “survival guide” that addresses the challenges of second- and third-year residents.
She also has won multiple awards from the North Texas Research Forum and the Texas AFP, including an entry in a poster contest focused on cervical cancer screening.
“Women’s health is important to me,” she said. “I find it fulfilling to explore different research opportunities, advocate for things I’m passionate about and drive change.”
Charting a course in family medicine
Lambert-Johnson will graduate in June and already has a job lined up in her residency’s health system. She’ll be staying in Fort Worth, where her husband is stationed in the Air Force.
“I’m going to be pursuing hospital medicine and academic medicine,” she said. “I’m passionate about teaching and advancing family medicine. I want to be a mentor that students and residents can lean on throughout their medical journey.”
It’s not surprising that Lambert-Johnson feels called to teach. Her grandmother, parents and brother are teachers.
“Everyone thought I was going to be a teacher or a professor,” she said. “But I thought, how can I feel fulfilled, and how can I best serve the people around me? I knew that medicine was the best option for me because I want to wake up every day feeling like I have a purpose. I found that within medicine.”
Advocating for residents with servant leadership
Lambert-Johnson said her time as chief resident has given her confidence and helped her learn about leadership and advocating for her peers.
“At our program, servant leadership is emphasized,” she said. “You’re not doing things for you. You’re doing it for the people you’re serving. It put that into perspective for me.”
Winning the GME Award also was a confidence booster. Lambert-Johnson and her fellow award winners received $2,500 scholarships as well as hotel accommodations, airfare and registration for the 2025 Family Medicine Experience (FMX) in Anaheim, California. The application period for the 2026 GME Awards is open through May 27. FMX 2026 will be held Oct. 20-24, in Nashville, Tennessee.
“That was a huge networking opportunity for me,” she said. “I was able to speak to people at different stages in their careers. The experience really broadened my horizons to how far we can have an impact, not only in our communities but in the country. I always think to myself, ‘Am I doing it all? Is this good enough?’ That was a moment to feel appreciated.”
Lambert-Johnson got an early introduction to family medicine in her native Jamaica. As a young girl, she was knocked unconscious while playing outside and suffered a concussion.
“The only hospital was a two-hour walk for my mom,” she said. “She carried me several miles. In our parish, we only had family medicine doctors at the time. It was rural to the point where we didn’t even have a traffic light. I’m just thankful for the family medicine doctors who were there at the hospital that not only treated me, but really helped to alleviate my mom’s fears. I’ve had a love for family medicine from the start because of my personal experience.”