This February, the American Board of Family Medicine (ABFM) will celebrate Black History Month and take a closer look into the health care disparities that impact people and communities of color. Follow along this month as we highlight the impact Black family physicians have on their communities.

In the fall of 2020, ABFM committed to a comprehensive strategy to address health equity for people of all races. There are numerous ways that a certifying board can help in this effort.  For ABFM, this has involved implementing a series of changes to expand certification activities that help increase the knowledge and skills physicians need to improve health equity in their communities. We are also working to spread critical knowledge and awareness, conducting research that informs this work, helping to advance policy related to equity, and ensuring that board-certified family physicians demonstrate the knowledge, practice, and professionalism that supports improving health equity for all.

ABFM President Dr. Warren Newton said, “We are acutely aware of the complexity and depth of the challenges to eliminate health disparities and improve health equity. ABFM recognizes and offers our unwavering support for the diverse community of family physicians who commit daily to this effort.

In 2020, Health.gov released their Healthy People 2030 Initiative to increase public focus on health equity, social determinants of health, and health literacy. Within that release is significant data that details the health disparities for certain health conditions that Black Americans face when compared to White Americans and other minorities.

We’ll highlight these conditions by sharing important data and statistics on our public website and social media platforms to further educate the public and encourage those at risk to seek more information from their ABFM board-certified family physician.

Additionally, we will be sharing the stories of Black physicians who care for patients across a variety of different environments. We’re excited to share the insight, challenges, and encouraging outcomes that Dr. Kalaki Clarke, Dr. Tiffani Maycock, and ABFM Senior VP of Diplomate Experience Dr. Gary LeRoy have seen and contributed to in their own communities.

Please keep an eye on our social media outlets for additional content or visit https://health.gov/healthypeople to review the exceptional data they are presenting.

Finally, if you or your family member think you may be at risk for any of these health conditions, we encourage you to reach out to an ABFM board-certified family physician to learn more.