On July 1, 2019, Renée Crichlow, MD, became the newest president of the Minnesota Academy of Family Physicians.
Crichlow is an assistant professor at the University of Minnesota in the Department of Family Medicine and Community Health. She is faculty at the University of Minnesota North Memorial Family Medicine Residency and the director of advocacy and policy for the University of Minnesota Department of Family Medicine and Community Health.
She’s board-certified in family medicine and completed fellowships in faculty development and research and public health policy. Crichlow also co-founded The Ladder, a mentorship program in North Minneapolis for youth interested in careers in health care.
We asked her to share about her passion for family medicine and hopes for the Academy over the next year.
Why did you choose family medicine?
When I thought of all the doctors that I had growing up, the ones that treated my whole family were the ones that I remembered the most and the best. When I was young, I thought that was what doctors were supposed to do—take care of people their whole life. When I got to medical school, I had amazing family medicine mentors. That sealed the deal! I knew, then, that family medicine was for me.
What’S the biggest challenge facing family medicine?
The biggest challenge for family medicine, today, is a dysfunctional health care system that comprises American health care. When health care is treated as a marketplace and patients are considered customers, the value of primary care is undermined. Primary care needs to be the foundation of the American health care system. Only then will we all benefit from better outcomes and more cost-effective care.
What are your hopes for your Time as MAFP President?
In this next year, my hope is to galvanize the resources and abilities of our membership and our organization to directly address payment reform at a legislative level. Dollars spent in primary care improve health care outcomes and reduce health care costs in our state. It should be done; it can be done; and, we are going to work together to get it done!
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Posted by:
- Jami Burbidge, MAM, director of advocacy & engagement, @jami_burbidge
- Emie Buege, communications