J Am Board Fam Med
September 2021
The first repository of research in family medicine in the United States was the () (https://www.mdedge.com/familymedicine).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has laid bare the dis-integrated health care system in the United States. Decades of inattention and dwindling support for public health, coupled with declining access to primary care medical services have left many vulnerable communities without adequate COVID-19 response and recovery capacity. "Health is a Community Affair" is a 1966 effort to build and deploy local communities of solution that align public health, primary care, and community organizations to identify health care problem sheds, and activate local asset sheds.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPurpose: To determine those factors associated with family physicians certified in sports medicine (SM-FPs) devoting 75% or more of their professional time to the exclusive practice of sports medicine.
Methods: Data from the American Board of Family Medicine sports medicine examination registration questionnaires from 2003 to 2017 were analyzed. The characteristics of SM-FPs devoting 75% or more of their time to sports medicine were compared with those SM-FPs spending less than 75% time.
Arch Environ Occup Health
April 2022
Asbestos ore was sampled from a historical anthophyllite mine in Staten Island, New York. High-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) was used to image the structure of nineteen fibers of the anthophyllite asbestos. The anthophyllite was characterized by a high level of chain width disorder, involving wide chain multiplicity faults (CMFs) that were frequent in fibers, randomly spaced, and ranged from one to eight chains in width.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAnomalous levels of iridium in sedimentary strata are associated with mass extinction events caused by impact events. In the case of the end-Triassic extinction event, the anomalies as well as the extinctions are linked to the eruption of the Central Atlantic Magmatic Province (CAMP) flood basalts. We report new data on concentrations of iridium in continental strata of the Fundy, Deerfield, Hartford and Newark basins, both above and below the oldest CAMP flows in these basins, that demonstrate that these anomalies are more common than previously known.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Am Board Fam Med
July 2021
The history of the American Board of Family Medicine (ABFM) is briefly recounted by focusing on 4 major touchstones that can be considered instrumental in shaping its development as the third largest specialty board in the United States. These include the board's founding, its implementation of maintenance of certification, the creation of its research enterprise, and its culture. The importance of each of these touchstones to the unique contributions that the ABFM has made to the specialty board community is explored.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTremolite-actinolite (TA) fibers from the lungs of deceased former Quebec mine workers were found to be coated with sub-nanometer particles. Qualitative chemical analyses were performed on the particles indicating that they were composed of silicon and oxygen. The crystal lattice structure of all amphibole minerals, including the TA series, is arranged as pairs of linear chains of SiO tetrahedra that are linked together to form double chains.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjective: To update information regarding practice patterns of family physicians with a certificate of added qualifications (CAQ) in Sports Medicine (SM), because it has been over 10 years since the last comprehensive study.
Design: Cross-sectional analysis of 2017 and 2018 American Board of Family Medicine (ABFM) Family Medicine Certification and SM CAQ examination registration practice demographic questionnaire data.
Setting: N/A.
Purpose: To demonstrate the degree to which the American Board of Family Medicine's certification examination is representative of family physician practice with regard to frequency of diagnoses encounter and the criticality of the diagnoses.
Methods: Data from 2012 National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey was used to assess the frequency of diagnoses encountered by family physicians nationally. These diagnoses were also rated by a panel of content experts for how critical it was to diagnose and treat the condition correctly and then assign the condition to 1 of the 16 content categories used on the American Board of Family Medicine examination.
Background And Objectives: Board certification programs have been criticized as not relevant to practice, not improving patient care, and creating additional burdens on already overburdened physicians. Many physicians may feel compelled to participate in board certification programs in order to satisfy employer, hospital, and insurer requirements; however, the influence of forces as motivators for physicians to continue board certification is poorly understood.
Methods: We used data from the 2017 American Board of Family Medicine (ABFM) Family Medicine Certification Examination practice demographic registration questionnaire for those seeking to continue their certification, removing physicians who indicated they did not provide direct patient care.
Using 2017 data, we demonstrate a sharp increase in the proportion of family physicians (FPs) working primarily in rural emergency departments and increasing numbers of FPs working in urgent care centers. Despite growth in emergency medicine-trained physicians, FPs are likely to continue to be the backbone of emergency care in rural America.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Occup Environ Med
June 2019
Objective: Our objective is to propose a simple procedure for evaluating potential recent heavy exposure to tremolite.
Methods: One day after an accidental exposure to tremolite in rock dust, sputum was sampled; 3 months later a laryngeal lavage was taken. The sputum was examined with scanning electron microscopy (SEM); the lavage was examined with transmission electron microscopy (TEM).
Purpose: Lack of specialty board certification has been reported as a significant physician-level predictor of receiving a disciplinary action from a state medical board. This study investigated the association between family physicians receiving a disciplinary action from a state medical board and certification by the American Board of Family Medicine (ABFM).
Method: Three datasets were merged and a series of logistic regressions were conducted examining the relationship between certification status and disciplinary actions when adjusting for covariates.
Arch Environ Occup Health
March 2020
Using the recognized amosite standard, we have performed transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and chemical analyses. We use high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) and zone-axis selected area electron diffraction (SAED) to describe the molecular structure of the fibers. We find that both microscopic observational evidence and statistical dimensional characteristics indicate that the amosite fibers are formed by longitudinal splitting, with surfaces produced by fine twinning and lateral boundaries formed by parting parallel to the planes of double and triple sheets of amphibole chain structures.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Medical certifying boards' core mission is assuring the public that Diplomates have the requisite knowledge, skills, and professional character to provide high-quality medical care. By understanding their Diplomates' workforce and practice environments, Boards ensure that certification is relevant to the profession and accountable to the public. Current and reliable data are key to meeting this function.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Am Board Fam Med
September 2019
We found substantial gaps between preparation for, and practice of, early career family physicians in nearly all clinical practice areas. With reported intentions of graduates for a broad scope of practice, gaps between practice and preparation suggest family physicians early in their careers may not be finding opportunities to provide comprehensive care.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Family medicine is a specialty of breadth, providing comprehensive health care for the individual and the family that integrates the broad scope of clinical, social, and behavioral sciences. As such, the scope of practice (SOP) for family medicine is extensive; however, over time many family physicians narrow their SOP. We sought to provide a nationally representative description of the most common and the most critical diagnoses that family physicians see in their practice.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBoard certification is associated with higher quality care. We sought to determine the rates and predictors of attrition from certification among family physicians who achieved initial certification with the American Board of Family Medicine from 1980 through 2000. In this period, 5.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Due to the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME)/American Osteopathic Association (AOA) single-accreditation model, the specialty of family medicine may see as many as 150 programs and 500 trainees in AOA-accredited programs seek ACGME accreditation. This analysis serves to better understand the composition of physicians completing family medicine residency training and their subsequent certification by the American Board of Family Medicine.
Methods: We identified residents who completed an ACGME-accredited or dual-accredited family medicine residency program between 2006 and 2016 and cross-tabulated the data by graduation year and by educational background (US Medical Graduate-MD [USMG-MD], USMG-DO, or International Medical Graduate-MD [IMG-MD]) to examine the cohort composition trend over time.
In response to growing concern about the declining performance on the American Board of Family Medicine Certification Examination, several strategies were employed to assist program directors with preparing their residents to take the examination. The effect of these efforts seems to have resulted in significant improvement in performance.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPhysician burnout has become a critical issue in a rapidly changing health care environment and is reported to be increasing. However, little is known about the prevalence of this problem among board-certified family physicians. Using an abbreviated burnout survey, we found a lower prevalence of this problem than has been previously reported.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPurpose: Medicare beneficiary spending patterns reflect those of the 306 Hospital Referral Regions where physicians train, but whether this holds true for smaller areas or for quality is uncertain. This study assesses whether cost and quality imprinting can be detected within the 3,436 Hospital Service Areas (HSAs), 82.4 percent of which have only 1 teaching hospital, and whether sponsoring institution characteristics are associated.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Am Board Fam Med
November 2016