“It is a privilege and honor to serve our community with so many wonderful, talented, and caring people on this team. Together, we can transform health care to make the world a better and brighter place to live.”Welcome to the Department of Family and Community Medicine at the University of Alabama Birmingham (UAB) Heersink School of Medicine. Our department has a long-standing history of clinical care, medical education, innovation in research, and service. The department continues to grow and it is an exciting time to join the department.  

The country needs better primary care and our department is here to help. There is a national shortage of primary care providers in a time when chronic diseases, such as obesity, are at an all-time high. Among other areas, our focus includes caring for people, communities, and populations utilizing teamwork and the principles of lifestyle and exercise medicine.

Our clinical footprint is expanding, with the base at our Family Medicine Clinic at Highlands. Here, we care for people of all ages, backgrounds, and disease processes. Our student health clinic offers services for UAB students and we are the team physicians for the UAB student-athletes.

Collaboration is important to us. We have a robust family medicine interest group that utilizes our regional campus partnerships in Huntsville, Montgomery, and Tuscaloosa. Last year, over 15% of our graduates went into family medicine training, which is a testament to the institution’s dedication to primary care. Our partnership with Cahaba Medical Care has led to the development of a new, full spectrum 20-20-20 family medicine residency training program (Cahaba-UAB) that is comprehensive and innovative. Our program is one of the few across the country that utilizes the unique longitudinally integrated curriculum, which is the foundation for both our urban (7-7-7) and rural (5-5-5) tracks.

Our department shares in the rich history of UAB scholarship, which is internationally recognized for its exceptional research. This includes over $430 million in sponsored research funds each year and extraordinary programs for training and mentorship. Our institution offers collaborative opportunities with the UAB Center for Exercise Medicine, the UAB Hugh Kaul Precision Medicine Institute, and the UAB/Lakeshore Research Collaborative.

We invite you to learn more about our department including its top-notch clinical programs, innovative educational opportunities, and cutting-edge research.

Again, welcome to the Department of Family and Community Medicine at UAB!

Sincerely,

Irf

Irfan M. Asif, MD
Professor and Chair
Associate Dean for Primary Care and Rural Health
Department of Family and Community Medicine
University of Alabama Birmingham (UAB) Heersink School of Medicine