The Health is Primary campaign made a stop in Raleigh on April 16. Three Duke Family Medicine residents — Aaron George, DO, Farhad Modarai, DO, and Vanessa Solomon, DO — attended the event with program director Viviana Martinez-Bianchi, M.D., and assistant program director Donna Tuccero, M.D.
George, Modarai, and Solomon share their take-aways from the event below.
Aaron George, DO, third-year resident
"Health is Primary is a collaborative project of eight national organizations in family medicine, uniting under the shared goal to advance “Family Medicine for America’s Health.” The group has a five-year vision to define the role of family medicine and primary care to the public and to lay a path to the future for the profession to meet their triple aim for better health, better health care, and lower costs for patients and communities. Among the recognized goals of the Health is Primary campaign are to create a United States health care system that ensures broad access, increases value in primary care, provides comprehensive payment, has transformative training experiences, utilizes technology to support effective care and reduces health disparities.
The campaign stop in Raleigh brought together some of the best minds and leaders in primary care in the state of North Carolina for an afternoon discussion on innovation and the trajectory of the profession. Patients, families and communities remained at the heart of the conversation — as did looking for opportunity to control the spiraling costs of our American health care system. The campaign is the initial communication and marketing for the five-year vision to enhance “Family Medicine for America’s Health.” As a young leader in family medicine, I am honored to be a part of the conversation, and I look forward to the great work ahead to inspire better health and a better health care system for all Americans."
Farhad Modarai, DO, second-year resident
"The Health is Primary campaign is generating a conversation that is vital to the health of our nation. A conversation that hopes to spark a grassroots movement to get patients, health care providers and communities working together to improve our broken health care system with an emphasis on primary care. The energy in the room was palpable and a conversation was beautifully moderated by the famous TR Reid, who understands the importance of the role family medicine and primary care plays in improving the health of our nation. The panelists all shared their experiences and enthusiasm for challenging the status quo, whether on the frontline rural trenches, in an administrative role, or in medical education. They highlighted the innovation across the state of North Carolina. It was a proud moment for me when TR Reid commented that our state is one of the most innovative in the nation when it comes to primary care. To hear this coming from an award-winning reporter who has spent a good part of his career studying health systems around the world is inspiring, and I feel fortunate to have the privilege to train in this environment."
Vanessa Solomon, DO, first-year resident
"I was fortunate to be in attendance at the Health is Primary Raleigh campaign launch on April 16. I was pleased to walk away from the event feeling even more inspired and motivated about my decision to be a primary care physician. While a broad array of stake holders were at the table and a multitude of important messages were touched upon, two rang most true for me.
The first was that while incentivizing bright young medical students to enter primary is crucial, no matter what the financial remuneration, a passion to truly give continuity of care and be involved with one’s patients on a deeper level must be present to pursue the specialty of family medicine. This idea led to the second message that resonated with me.
The idea that primary care is not just knowing your patients’ health, but knowing your patients as people is a critical one to being a truly valuable member of the health care community. Knowing your patients in a way that only comes from seeing them regularly over long periods is the key to giving our patients the type of care that will keep them out of the hospital and enjoying their passions as long as possible."
Editor’s note: Duke Family Medicine residents guest blog the second Friday of every month.