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The holiday season can be full of tradition, time with loved ones, and space to rest and look forward to a new year. The season may also bring up feelings of loss, stress, and exhaustion. 

Happy Holidays from the Department of Family and Community Medicine!

Michael Faircloth, M.D.Michael Faircloth, M.D., grew up in a small, rural town in Alabama. His brother was born with Down syndrome and the care he received, even in a town with few resources, inspired Faircloth to put his interest in science to use in service of others: he decided to go to medical school to become a family medicine physician. 

The Department of Family and Community Medicine has won several awards in 2021 for provider and clinical excellence. We are proud to honor the outstanding work of our teams across our clinics. 

When they look toward their future in medicine, UAB Heersink School of Medicine students Carla Brown and Ellie Pitchford both envision practicing medicine in rural communities similar to the ones that shaped them. 

One in 10 Americans has diabetes and more than 88 million have prediabetes. With an often-irreversible diagnosis and lasting health implications, diabetes is a disease that can be prevented with the right strategies and support. For National Diabetes Awareness Month, two providers in the Department of Family and Community Medicine are sharing tips on how to prevent diabetes altogether. 

In mid-October, 25 medical students gathered for a Special Topics course teaching procedures that could become a frequent feature of their lives if they go into family medicine. 

Becky Reamey, Ph.D.The Alabama Statewide Area Health Education Centers (AHEC) Program announces the appointment of Rebecca A. Reamey, Ph.D., to fill the position of Associate Director upon the retirement of Glenda Stanley. Reamey joins Alabama AHEC at an auspicious time as the organization transitions back to normal operations after many months spent in COVID-19 relief. It has been a period of great growth in terms of increased outreach and potential for the development and fostering of diverse partnerships upon which Alabama AHEC hopes to capitalize in the coming months. 

Fall sports are in full swing in Birmingham, and UAB Sports and Exercise Medicine fellows Matthew Miesch, M.D., and Christian Muller, D.O., are in the middle of it all, whether courtside in Bartow Arena, on the sidelines at high school football games or at the ice rink with the Birmingham Bulls. 

According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), use of telehealth visits increased 50% at the beginning of 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the way that many providers offer care, and it has created new ways for patients to connect with care teams from their homes. 

Claire Wilson, MS2At the same time that the world was reckoning with widespread outcry after the killing of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer and dealing with the growing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, Claire Wilson was experiencing a number of changes in her personal life. During her first year of medical school, a stressful and stretching time by itself, Wilson was managing family challenges and working through her own reactions to COVID-19 as an emerging medical provider and the racial injustice conversations happening around her as a multiracial woman. 

Student athletes are back and ready for a new season and the Sports and Exercise Medicine fellows at the University of Alabama at Birmingham are ready to provide the care they need. 

Glenda Stanley, MA, Associate Director of the Alabama Statewide Area Health Education Centers (AHEC) Program retired in October. Stanley has served the National AHEC Organization for over 20 years. 

Tiffani Maycock, D.O.Two faculty members from the UAB Selma Family Medicine Residency Program were promoted to associate professor in August 2021. Tiffani Maycock, D.O., residency program director, and Maria Oquendo, M.D., both received the promotion based on their achievements in resident education and patient care in Selma. 

Among the hidden costs of the COVID-19 pandemic is an alarming rise in domestic violence and intimate partner violence, a form of domestic violence in sexual and romantic relationships with devastating effects that can ripple across generations. 

Erin DeLaney, M.D. Debbie and Johnny Scogin have been UAB Family Medicine patients since the mid-1980s. The Scogins were patients of Robert E. Kynerd, M.D., for 20 years, once he retired he referred them to Erin DeLaney, M.D., a family medicine physician, vice-chair for clinical affairs and quality, assistant professor and medical director for the Department of Family and Community at UAB Medicine-Highlands. 

The American Academy of Family Physicians Foundation’s Center for the History of Family Medicine is accepting applicants for their 2021 essay contest. Essays must center on the history of family medicine but can include creative elements. Winners of the national contest can win up to $1,000 for their essay, and the Department of Family and Community Medicine is offering additional prizes for UAB applicants to encourage participation. 

The Comprehensive Urban Underserved and Rural Experience (CU²RE) program has received a supplemental award from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) for $5.2 million.   

Summer programs are a common way for medical students to gain even more experience following their first year of medical school. Students might spend a few weeks researching alongside a faculty member, learning more about a relevant medical topic through elective seminars or working in a clinic. For Urban Underserved Pathway (U²P) students, CU²RE summer programming involved a full schedule of these activities and more.

The Comprehensive Urban Underserved and Rural Experience (CU²RE) program recently finished its first year. The initiative, funded by a HRSA grant in 2020, aims to increase the number of primary care providers interested in caring for underserved populations in Alabama. 

U²P is the first pathway under the CU²RE program umbrella and connects students who are interested in serving underserved populations in urban areas to clinics and experiences designed to strengthen their ability to pursue careers in urban primary care. The CU²RE program welcomed eight students in the winter of 2020 to be a part of the first class of U²P students. These students participated in elective trainings, clinical hours, research and more to increase their ability to practice community-minded and patient-focused medicine.

So far, the program has given students access to more than 700 clinical hours, three skills labs, six educational modules informed by campus and state leaders, and financial stipends to offset the burden of a medical education. Students also spent 20 hours learning about social determinants of health and cultural humility, in addition to other core areas of focus. CU²RE leadership developed an engaging six-week summer program to complement the fall and spring portions of the pathway.

"Our intent with the planning of the summer program was to give each student full exposure to clinical opportunities, research, special topics and skills labs to create an unparalleled summer experience,” said Jill Marsh, M.D., assistant professor and director of the U²P portion of CU²RE. “These incredible students were able to experience many aspects of urban underserved primary care during their only summer in medical school and, we hope, had fun along the way.”

The six-week summer program included time dedicated to topics like research, behavioral health, telehealth, health disparities, social determinants of health, racism in medicine, intersectionality and more. Students also received training in dermatologic, sports medicine and women’s health procedures through skills workshops led by CU²RE and department faculty.

Jack Stein, a U²P student, shared his perspective on the summer program and its impact on him.

“The CU²RE summer program was an incredibly valuable experience. It went beyond the traditional approach of many summer programs by providing tons of clinical experience and hands-on procedural practice within the scope of family medicine.”

U²P students enjoying lunch during their trip to Montgomery

Students participated in discussions and immersive community experiences aimed at expanding their understanding of the impact that culture has on medical outcomes and treatment. Brandi Shah, M.D., MPH, assistant professor and director of the Office of Identify, Inclusion and Collective Conscience (I2C2), and Shyla Fields, program manager, took the students on tours of civil rights landmarks and museums in Birmingham and Montgomery. These experiences reinforced the lessons learned through the CU²RE modules on racism in medicine, anti-oppression and cultural competency.

“This summer with U²P was extremely impactful for me,” said Channing Bruce, a U²P student. “Not only did I get to spend a lot of time in the Department of Family and Community Medicine, I got to have meaningful discussions and attend sessions that are unique to this program.”

The integrated summer program challenged students to apply their knowledge through interactive interprofessional activities, leadership seminars and development of a 10-patient panel. Each student was also encouraged to choose a research focus and begin their scholarly activity with support from Kimberly Smith, Ph.D., assistant professor and director of the Alabama Practice-Based Research Network.

CU²RE’s growing team of faculty and staff members work continuously to innovate and provide the best experience for students to encourage interest and personal investment in a primary care career after medical school.

“Primary care is exciting and there are many ways that family medicine can help address the shortages and health status of our state,” noted Irfan Asif, M.D.

Asif is the chair of the department, associate dean for primary care and rural health for the UAB School of Medicine and the principal investigator for CU2RE.

“We want to showcase all the facets of primary care to our students and encourage them to become community-minded practitioners through exposure to important topics like social determinants of health, racism in medicine, telehealth, and much more. These student leaders are the future of primary care, and we believe our investment in them now will pay dividends for statewide health and wellness in the years to come,” said Asif.

The U²P students' participation in the summer program reinforced and elaborated on the lessons that they learned in the spring, beginning the longitudinal path all CU²RE students will experience throughout medical school. They will continue with supplemental programming as they begin another year of medical school.

“This summer, I expected to grow my understanding of what it means to be a future physician,” said Kristina Redd, a U²P student. “I had no idea that this summer would create memories that captured my soul and resonate with me in such a way that affirmed my work and calling as a healer.”

In addition to the summer programming, Marsh and Adrienne Fowler Payne, MPA, program director for CU²RE, worked to recruit and expand the program to accept more students in fall 2021 for its second year of programmatic offerings.

"We are expanding the program to include our regional campuses this year,” said Payne. “As CU²RE grows, so does our potential impact on the state. It is an exciting time to be involved with our department and we encourage all interested first-year medical students to apply.”

First-year medical students at UAB can apply to the program online on the CU²RE program’s webpage. Applications for the 2021-2022 cohort are due by September 1.

Earl Salser, M.D., is the director of medical student education for the departmentTo complete their medical school training, students in the UAB School of Medicine must train under practicing physicians in most specialties through third-year clerkships. The Department of Family and Community Medicine connects dozens of medical students with community preceptors each semester, giving medical students a chance to interact and build relationships with doctors in family medicine. Earl Salser, M.D., is the director of medical student education for the department and is a dedicated preceptor.

Salser has mentored students for more than 15 years and has encouraged many to find a deeper appreciation for patient-centered medicine. Salser, like other departmental preceptors, has built lasting relationships with some of his students. Jonathan Peters, M.D., is a graduate of UAB and a former student of the family medicine department. He is now a community preceptor for family medicine, mentoring and teaching students in his role as a physician at Cahaba Medical Center. Peters and Salser met when Peters was a first-year student in medical school, unsure of what specialty he would go into after completing school.

“Earl took a sincere interest in all of his students as people,” said Peters. “He wanted to encourage us beyond just medical training but through advice and empathizing with where we were in our medical journey.”

After working with Peters at a local clinic, Salser recommended that he participate in a pathway program over the summer to gain more experience in the family medicine specialty. The summer program instilled a love of family medicine and gave Peters a clear path forward as he continued his medical education.

“Earl’s recommendation helped steer my interest in medicine,” said Peters. “No one in my family was a doctor. I knew that the relational piece with patients was something that I wanted, and I was exposed to it that summer through family medicine.”

Salser says that it was natural for him to encourage students toward a career in family medicine. While each medical specialty has its benefits, Salser and others note that family medicine is an easy fit for those who enjoy creating and maintaining relationships with patients.

Before returning to UAB to work in the department and focus on medical student education, Salser treated hundreds of patients in private practice and taught students as a preceptor. Even before he created a career educating the next generation of physicians, he was contributing to their education in his clinic.

Jonathan Peters. M.D., is one of the department's community preceptors

“I enjoyed having students at my practice and found it intellectually challenging,” said Salser. “It made me want to be a better doctor so I could help them in their journey. When I made the switch to UAB, it seemed fitting that mentorship would be a big part of my new role. I enjoy being that connector for students to learn and find a path that they can succeed in.”

After working with Salser and other family medicine faculty members at UAB and in the community, Peters graduated and began a specialty training program in family medicine in Kansas. He went on to complete an international fellowship and work in private practice in Kansas serving rural areas. Once he returned to Birmingham, he began working with Cahaba Medical Care as one of their family medicine residency faculty members. Peters and Salser connected again as Peters began accepting UAB students in his clinic, just as he had been accepted years earlier.

“Working with students showed me that you don’t know what you don’t know until someone helps make the road a little smoother for you,” said Peters. “As a preceptor and mentor, you can turn around and do the same for someone just starting their medical journey. It is amazing to invest in others in this way and see the rewards that come out of it.”

Salser and Peters were both mentored throughout their family medicine journeys and have done the same for dozens of students. They view their contributions as a way to give back to a specialty that has given so much to them. Many of the department’s preceptors are community practice physicians who volunteer their time to train and encourage the next generation of family medicine practitioners. For family medicine, training new leaders is part of the fabric of their work and energizes these physicians as they see future medical leaders in their students.

“Teaching students revives my sense of purpose and reminds me why I got into medicine,” said Salser.

To learn more or apply to become a preceptor, visit the Department of Family and Community Medicine's preceptor webpage.

A condensed version of this story appears in the Department of Family and Community Medicine's "2020 Year in Review."