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What is next for family medicine? After the long, rough road since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, other topics are again receiving renewed attention. Family medicine researchers continue to consider issues important to our patients and practices. There is a collection of clinical research on children's health care. One article outlines practical actions to move medical academia past racism. The need for physician trust in patients is also often overlooked. Other articles address how to improve the practice of family medicine and a framework for thinking about legal and ethical issues in sports medicine. Three in-depth clinical reviews cover lumps and bumps of wrists and hands, spondylosis/spondylolistheses, and vitamin D association with specific disease entities.

This issue continues our tradition of advancing family medicine by publishing articles on issues that affect patients and the practice of family medicine, specifically with an emphasis on inequity and the COVID pandemic, which are often intertwined. We have articles on topical issues such as appropriate transgender care, newer diabetes medications, transportation as a social risk, and a thought-provoking commentary on ableism. A clinical review on olfactory loss takes on new meaning. Oregon Medicaid coverage policy supported family physicians assisting their patients by decreasing their opioid use, and a article suggests that buprenorphine should be decriminalized. Strengthening the desire to enter family medicine before starting medical school can help meet future patient needs.

As usual, this issue of the

After years of slow progress, the COVID-19 pandemic forced a rapid adoption of telehealth and telemedicine. The transition was not uniform across demographic groups, reflecting social determinants of health. This special issue of

BACKGROUND: The US Department of Veterans Affairs designated education officer (DEO) is a unique facility-based leadership role responsible for training of > 40 health professions in cooperation with affiliated academic institutions. METHODS: We conducted mixed methods analyses of data from a DEO needs assessment. Quantitative analysis identified differences between DEOs who are physicians and DEOs who are other professions on role characteristics and self-perceived task effectiveness. Qualitative analysis using rapid analysis procedures was applied to open-ended responses on facilitators and barriers. RESULTS: Responses were received from 127 DEOs (96% response rate). About 80% were physicians. There were no statistically significant differences between physician and other professional DEOs self-ratings for general tasks. For profession-specific tasks, physician DEOs were significantly less confident than other professional DEOs in working with associated health (P < .001–.01) and nurse training programs (P < .001–.03). DEOs identified multiple facilitators that assist their individual effectiveness (eg, training, mentorship, communication) and common barriers (eg, not enough staff). CONCLUSIONS: Our findings are supportive of individuals from various health disciplines serving in the DEO role with responsibilities that span multiple health profession training programs. Future quantitative and qualitative work should include additional measures of individual and organizational characteristics, and actual measures of educational effectiveness.

The mental health of patients and clinicians before and during the pandemic are investigated and reported by multiple investigators. Improving health through practice change is challenging but possible. Telehealth increased dramatically since the beginning of the pandemic; what is its future?

To our peer reviewers: We thank you for your time, expertise, and dedication to the Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine (JABFM) . JABFM peer reviewers serve a vital role in the field of family medicine and its scientific community. We acknowledge and thank our peer reviewers for

Graduate medical education is centered in hospitals despite a care system where patients mostly receive their care in an outpatient setting. Such gaps may exist because of inadequate funding for residency positions in community and hospital-based clinics.Determine if physician residents' contribution to outpatient workload offsets their costs for supervision, salary, and fringe benefits as residents acquire skills to become independent practitioners.VA's electronic patient records from 2005 through 2018 were analyzed using generalized linear mixed models to estimate resident and staff contributions to workload in relative value units.Resident participation rate is resident contributed workload net of supervision as a percent of total clinic workload. Productivity is per diem resident workload as a percent of per diem staff workload. Efficiency is per dollar resident workload as a percent of per dollar staff workload. Progressive independence is annual rate of change in resident productivity.Average participation rates varied by specialty from 6% to 22%, with 11% (primary care) and 13% (psychiatry). Productivity rates ranged from 21% to 94%, with 57% (primary care) and 61% (psychiatry). Efficiency rates varied from 0.63 to 3.81, with 1.69 (primary care), 1.89 (psychiatry). Progressive independence rates varied from 2.7%/year (psychiatry) to 39.7%/year (specialty care).Although residents rotating through most VA clinics generate revenue to cover their direct costs as they learn, some federal subsidies may be necessary to encourage hospital- and community-based clinics to accept residents from the less profitable primary care and mental health specialties.

2019 was the 32nd year of print and 17th year of online publication of the Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine ( JABFM ). Here we provide our annual report of articles published in 2019 that were of greatest interest to our readers. [Table 1][1] shows the 3 most frequently read

As usual, this issue of the journal delivers reports on a broad range of topics that can inform clinical practice. Several articles address equity, or the lack thereof, in health care. This includes research on the social determinants of health and how family medicine can contribute to redressing inequity. Another set of articles report on the ongoing wave of substance abuse. Additional training in addiction medicine for family physicians is 1 strategy for the United States to address this crisis. One of the most intriguing articles looks at the relationship between eating breakfast, amount of dietary fiber intake, and mortality. Several articles discuss ongoing changes or changes to family medicine on the horizon. Readers will find some well-written clinical reviews and an in-depth review of international practice-based research networks. Lastly, 2 great reads will remind readers how it feels to practice family medicine.

This is the first of two sequential equity and diversity-themed

This issue of the JABFM features research on a broad array of clinical topics. The topics of 5 articles involve controlled substances, including a sobering article on the risks of amphetamines in older adults. An excellent quick reference guide for managing common COVID-19 symptoms is presented. Two other articles consider hypertension treatment in primary care, demonstrating that treating blood pressure is anything but straightforward. Several additional clinical topics include mononucleosis, influenza, and the impact of home life on childhood weight and eating habits. A study from Virginia underscores that primary care, as a system, is distressed. A review of the existing literature on "slow medicine" comes to important conclusions. Some health systems are partnering with local resources to practically address such social determinants as food insecurity. Not surprisingly, family physicians are filling gaps in emergency care around the country.

PURPOSE: Approximately 21,000 US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) health professions trainees per year are in associated health (AH) occupations. We describe the VA Office of Academic Affiliation’s expansion of AH education in recent years and highlight the importance of increasing AH education broadly in the United States. Our focus is on the growing role of AH education in the VA over the past decade by describing the demand for AH professionals in all clinical settings; scope of funded AH training in the VA; and targeted AH education expansion efforts. OBSERVATIONS: The VA provides clinical training for more than 40 AH professions and provides funding for 17 of these professions. Expansion efforts in AH over the past 10 years have yielded a 33% increase in stipend-funded positions and targeted interprofessional training, VA strategic initiatives, rural populations, and conversion of pregraduate-degree positions to postgraduate-degree positions. CONCLUSIONS: In order to meet the complex health care needs of our nation, continued attention to interprofessional care and health professions education is of paramount importance. The VA has worked to address these broad needs and to meet the needs of veterans through increasing stipend-funded AH training positions by 33% and directly targeting high-need clinical areas. Ongoing expansion is anticipated in the areas of postgraduate-degree training and rural training.

As a discipline, we continue to learn lessons from Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)-lessons for practice, systems, and patient care. This issue also includes articles focused on 2 other topics that attract increasing attention by family physicians. First, articles describe how the social determinants of health impact health and how family physicians can overcome those obstacles with their patients. Patients want assistance from health systems for 1 specific need related to social determinants of their health. Second, we see increasing evidence about opioid prescriptions in primary care. Multiple clinical articles are pertinent to family medicine, such as different implications of an elevated sedimentation rate compared with C-reactive protein, practice facilitation, adolescent vaccination, family physician accuracy with potentially malignant skin lesions, and more.

In May 2021, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) collectively amplified the potential of high-quality primary care as a solution to a disparate, fractured health care system.[1][1] This solution can lower costs, improve utilization patterns, and reduce mortality.

Several research groups from multiple institutions provide structure and methods to improve research for family medicine. Colon cancer research includes which common screening test for colon cancer most often results in completed colonoscopy. Authors explore how some cardiovascular preventive medications are overused while others are underused. Three research papers specifically advance improvements for practice management, 3 articles address diabetes, 3 others cover family physicians caring for specific populations (pregnant women, children, and those with sports-related issues). There are practical research articles on practice management and others on common clinical problems. This issue also includes a clinical review on acute sensorineural hearing loss and human papilloma virus immunization guidelines that can cause confusion.

Family physician researchers continue to provide assistance to improve family medicine care. Commentaries on social determinants of health lead off this issue. Next, we have several papers on successful interventions by clinicians and/or patients to improve diabetes control, and then other provide information on other practice interventions that make a difference in overall care. Drug advertising continues to mislead. There is costly and nonproductive overuse of specific types of care. Herein is also a Scoping Review of possible indices for determining timely initiation of advance care planning. The issue's clinical reviews on use of transgender care, cervical myelopathy, and inhaled steroids for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease are pertinent, thorough, and timely.

From the United States and Netherlands, we have 2 articles on back pain, with findings that indicate significant treatment differences between the countries, and a high likelihood of persistence. The Inflammatory Diet is now shown to be related to diabetes. Multiple perspectives on palliative care for the homeless. Could pharmacists assist in preventing suicide? There are changes in the practice of family medicine. Social determinants of health substantially influence health and medical care. Moreover, care for patients from deprived communities is under-reimbursed. Patient pre-existing conditions increased after the Affordable Care Act, suggesting that repealing pre-existing condition protections would likely exacerbate disparities in health and health care.

To our peer reviewers: We thank you for your time, expertise, and dedication to the Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine ( JABFM ). JABFM peer reviewers serve a vital role in contributing to the field of family medicine and to its scientific community. We take this opportunity to

Purpose Approximately 21,000 US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) health professions trainees per year are in associated health (AH) occupations. We describe the VA Office of Academic Affiliation's expansion of AH education in recent years and highlight the importance of increasing AH education broadly in the United States. Our focus is on the growing role of AH education in the VA over the past decade by describing the demand for AH professionals in all clinical settings; scope of funded AH training in the VA; and targeted AH education expansion efforts. Observations The VA provides clinical training for more than 40 AH professions and provides funding for 17 of these professions. Expansion efforts in AH over the past 10 years have yielded a 33% increase in stipend-funded positions and targeted interprofessional training, VA strategic initiatives, rural populations, and conversion of pregraduate-degree positions to postgraduate-degree positions. Conclusions In order to meet the complex health care needs of our nation, continued attention to interprofessional care and health professions education is of paramount importance. The VA has worked to address these broad needs and to meet the needs of veterans through increasing stipend-funded AH training positions by 33% and directly targeting high-need clinical areas. Ongoing expansion is anticipated in the areas of postgraduate-degree training and rural training.

2020 was the 33rd year of print and 18th year of online publication of the Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine ( JABFM ). Here we provide our annual report of articles published in 2020 that were of greatest interest to our readers. [Table 1][1] shows the 3 most frequently read articles

This issue provides inspiring reports of family medicine during the Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and the provision of just-in-time COVID-19 information for clinicians. Conversely, burnout - yes or no? The issue includes information that suggests the negative effects of social determinants are related to America's system of paying for medical care. The announcement of the availability of an on-line archive of the official first journal of family medicine gives us the chance to acclaim Dr. Geyman, who started the Journal of Family Practice and was the first editor of this journal. And, as usual, there is more!

The year 2020 has been marked by historic protests across the United States and the globe sparked by the deaths of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and so many other Black people. The protests heightened awareness of racism as a public health crisis and triggered an antiracism movement.

The year 2020 has been marked by historic protests across the United States and the globe sparked by the deaths of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and so many other Black people. The protests heightened awareness of racism as a public health crisis and triggered an anti-racism movement

This issue of the Journal contains some exceptional research articles. A few are truly "must-reads," including a fascinating look at the relationship between having a usual source of care and telomere length. Glucosamine/chrondroitin supplementation seems to be helpful for more than just arthritis pain. There is a very practical advice on keeping patients discharged from the emergency department out of the hospital and on reducing patient requests for inappropriate antibiotics. This issue also features 5 articles addressing how family physicians can combat the opioid epidemic. Three articles highlight research on diabetes and another 3 on breast cancer. Payment reform, dermoscopy, and telemedicine are among many other topics covered.

This special issue contains several articles on well-being. Not surprisingly, many of these articles are specifically about burnout. The evidence shows differences in the rates of burnout between men and women family physicians as well as their responses. Clinical team structure and organizational change also contribute to burnout. What about the electronic medical record? We are also reminded that burnout is an international issue. There are also several articles on how technology is changing the way family physicians practice. Two articles report on issues regarding screening for frequently seen clinical entities, specifically breast cancer and alcohol misuse. There are also articles looking at the cost of medical assistant turnover in practices, the impact of continuity with a provider on the retention of patients in clinical trials, and much more of interest to family physicians.

Objectives Advance care planning (ACP) involvement could be substantially different by physician specialty or sex group, with implications for training and methods to increase ACP activities. The objective of this article is to compare primary care physicians (PCPs) and other specialty physicians and female compared with male physicians' views and interactions surrounding ACP. Methods This was a secondary analysis of an online anonymous survey distributed through a survey link to healthcare providers in hospital, ambulatory, and hospice settings in the greater Dayton, Ohio area in preparation for a community-wide advance care planning multitiered intervention. The measures included demographic data and questions regarding personal ACP decisions/experiences, opinions surrounding ACP in healthcare settings, and willingness to facilitate ACP with patients. Results There were 129 physician respondents, of which 39 (30.2%) were PCPs, and 33 (25.6%) were women. Most expressed interest in ACP, responding positively to a desire for more training, and approximately 25% were willing to be trained to teach others. The respondents by specialty group were similar in age and race, the presence or absence of religious affiliation, and stated frequency of ACP conversations. More than half (52.5%) reported having ACP conversations at least twice per month. The female physicians were younger and more likely to be in primary care. Female physicians also were more likely to discuss ACP with patients (P = 0.017), report formal training for ACP (P = 0.025), and be more willing to permit other healthcare provider types to be involved with ACP. PCPs reported time as a barrier more frequently than specialty physicians (P = 0.012). Other barriers to ACP were reported, including space, personal discomfort, and concerns about patient or family distress or disagreement. Conclusions Many physicians, regardless of specialty type or sex, are interested in undertaking more ACP conversations and being trained to do so. Overall, more female physicians than male physicians were involved and interested in various aspects of ACP, and they were more accepting of the involvement of nonphysician healthcare professionals in ACP. Multiple barriers for clinicians, patients, and families were identified that will need to be addressed by work settings or through education to increase ACP.

Case Report 1: A research article was submitted and later withdrawn, even though it was proceeding nicely through the review process at the Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine (JABFM). On further investigation, the author reported they had originally submitted the manuscript to a

Care coordination and behavioral health care integration are the subject of 4 of this month's articles. Patients with significant illness report that care coordination provides great challenges to them, and they expect family physicians to assist with the referrals and communication between the doctors. Patients' primary care providers were usually not the prescribers of patients' medical marijuana and were often unaware of its use, indicating lack of health care integration and coordination. Two articles provide insight into medication adherence. Also, how are family physicians addressing patient engagement at the practice level? Clinical topics in this issue include the following: specific exercises were not the answer to restless legs; epidural anesthesia may be associated with fewer, not more, vaginal lacerations; and fecal incontinence is less discussed but not necessarily less problematic than urinary incontinence. On the popular culture front, opioid mentions in top 100 songs are increasing. Lastly, what does it mean for the field of family medicine that some of us choose to become hospitalists?

Some aspects of the health of Americans are declining, and family medicine is addressing these ailments. Obesity is one factor, and family physicians provide nutrition counseling. Despite new models such as direct primary care, we have not found an ideal method for providing primary care to everyone in our health system. Not all family physicians report burnout: what is their secret? Scribes: some positives and negatives from one group. Rural America is in need of more family physicians who provide prenatal and natal care, and the proof is in the infant mortality rate. We also have 2 articles on improving pediatric care, and research on the relationship of thrush to mode of infant delivery. We have reviews of new cancer and cholesterol drugs, raising awareness of important knowledge for the primary care clinicians seeing the patients who take these drugs. In addition: tick bites and delayed anaphylaxis-when and how, culture-related skin findings, and helping male perpetrators of domestic violence.

This issue epitomizes family medicine with a heavy emphasis on research to prevent illness and illness progression. Which patients will experience significant symptomatic knee osteoarthritis? Do the elderly use retail clinics, and what is the impact on care for chronic conditions? Does capitation payment enhance or decrease same-day access? How do primary care practices risk stratify to provide integrated care? Can risk screening and on-site providers enhance psychiatric care? What screening questions should we ask adolescents, to identify problematic drug use? A report on a practice intervention to improve opioid prescribing practices, and another on the significant level of depression in many patients taking opioid medications. Which works better for smoking cessation-e-cigarettes or nicotine gum? Reminders about teratogenic drugs and those that cause hyperpigmentation. Interdisciplinary care with pharmacists in the office does not help just the patients. We have several articles on diabetes-early diagnosis, and consideration of screening for prediabetes as a quality standard-with added commentaries about this possibility.

This issue of the Journal evidences the wide variety of research methods that can effectively answer questions important to the practice of family medicine. For example, this issue includes 4 highly informative reports from qualitative or mix-methods research, plus surveys, a meta-analysis, a case report, and more. Mixed-methods were used to look at practice changes and to compare advance directive tools. Surveys were used to identify practical, but addressable, issues for mailed colon cancer screening tests, and the prevalence of atopic dermatitis, and emollient use in young children. Secondary analyses of national surveys were used to identify low-value patient requests, and how diabetes and prediabetes are being treated. Retrospective chart analysis of patients with frequent hospital admissions identified important characteristics of the patients and their problems. Meta-analysis methodology was used to stratify risks for pneumonia. And, a randomized trial was used to compare ways to train patients to use medical record patient portals.

In addition to the collection of veterans9 health articles, this edition of the journal contains a wide range of family medicine research reports, commentaries, clinical reviews, and scholarly observations. These articles clearly exemplify a key strength of family medicine scholarship: the focus is on our patients. Two articles look at modern care of patients with venous thromboembolic disease—the first on acute management and the second on long-term care. Two other articles explore the role of pharmacists in an interdisciplinary team. A clever use of big databases provides a thought-provoking answer about the long-term health of patients with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. Three articles give us possible glimpses into the future of family medicine, exploring a potential payment reform model, suggesting an alternative approach to cancer screening guideline development, and considering how family physicians remain relevant in the technology-laden medical world of tomorrow.

Seconds count in a study on the best electronic health note format to reduce medical record charting time and increase accuracy. Directly observed family physician work is compared with Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) coding examples and notably under-recognized. This issue contains articles from single practices that that implemented new methods of care and other reports on practice innovations that can be more broadly implemented. We have articles on opioid medication use for acute low back pain in primary care, an electronic chronic pain consult service, a key question to identify potential opioid misuse risk, and newly implemented screening for other substances of abuse. Omissions (or gaps) in care are also highlighted: from the common types of omissions identified by primary care clinicians, self-reported low levels of substance use screening by family medicine prenatal care providers, and inadequate and inadequately available hospital discharge summaries. In addition, the most important alarm symptoms for a cancer diagnosis are reported.

On July 31, 2020, Dr. Anne “Victoria” Neale retired as Deputy Editor of the Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine (JABFM) . I have had the extraordinary pleasure and honor of working with her the past 17 years. She is a terrific partner and I feel a profound sense of gratitude and

This issue primarily contains practice-based research reports. For a commentary on these articles, see Tapp.1 JABFM also has a call for submissions and accepted pre-print articles specifically on COVID at our Web site, www.jabfm.org These online COVID-related articles will be collated into a future print issue. This issue also has additional articles, encompassing a range of issues, as is common for JABFM.

Medication therapy emerged as a theme for this issue-from many perspectives and for different conditions. We have several articles on opioids, including for pain/noncancer pain; use by older drivers and their reported driving; and the advantages of family medicine treatment sites. A related article explores chronic widespread pain and concurrent low back pain. In addition, this issue covers the gamut of prescribing inappropriate medications for older individuals and prescribing antibiotics when a CT scan of the abdomen would not have found an indication for such treatment. Other included topics include social complexity and impact on primary care physician income.

JABFM seeks to widely disseminate its peer-reviewed publications, increasing article visibility for the purpose of advancing scientific knowledge. We describe the journal's approach to dissemination and recommend a number of strategies for authors to implement, including press releases and social media. Providing the article's digital object identifier (DOI) is most useful, compared with links that can break, or attaching the article PDF, which will depress reader metrics. All JABFM articles are freely accessible online worldwide.