Diplomate Spotlight Opening Doors with Board Certification: A Conversation with Long Standing Diplomate Joseph Cook Read Opening Doors with Board Certification: A Conversation with Long Standing Diplomate Joseph Cook
Phoenix Newsletter - July 2025 Available Now: 2026 5-Year Cycle Registration Read Available Now: 2026 5-Year Cycle Registration
Home Research Research Library Family Medicine and Obstetrics: Let’s Stop Pretending Family Medicine and Obstetrics: Let’s Stop Pretending 2018 Author(s) Young, Richard A, and Sundermeyer, R L Topic(s) What Family Physicians Do Keyword(s) Maternity Care, and Policy Brief Commentaries Volume Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine Source Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine It is time to stop pretending that delivering babies is one of the core activities of family medicine. At no time in the history of American family medicine have the majority of the members of the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) delivered babies. A study in 1982 found that approximately 44% of family physicians delivered babies1, another study reported 43% in 19862, another 26% in 19933, and the most recent data from the AAFP states the current number is 17.1%.4 The way forward from these trends should not be to continue business as usual. Barreto et al5 found that 13% of 2016 family medicine residency graduates deliver babies. Almost half the respondents were not interested at all in obstetrics practice (889/2018). Of those left who did not deliver babies, 60% mentioned lack of availability of jobs where family physicians in practice deliver babies as the reason and 60% mentioned lifestyle considerations, followed by malpractice costs and privileging challenges. These realities have implications for family medicine residency education and the basket of services provided by its graduates. Read More ABFM Research Read all 2025 Regional Variation in Scope of Practice by Family Physicians Go to Regional Variation in Scope of Practice by Family Physicians 2014 Tectonic shifts are needed in graduate medical education to ensure today’s trainees are prepared to practice as tomorrow’s physicians Go to Tectonic shifts are needed in graduate medical education to ensure today’s trainees are prepared to practice as tomorrow’s physicians 2019 How Physicians Prepare for Maintenance of Certification Exams: A Qualitative Study Go to How Physicians Prepare for Maintenance of Certification Exams: A Qualitative Study 2018 Rural Family Physicians Have a Broader Scope of Practice Than Urban Family Physicians Go to Rural Family Physicians Have a Broader Scope of Practice Than Urban Family Physicians
Author(s) Young, Richard A, and Sundermeyer, R L Topic(s) What Family Physicians Do Keyword(s) Maternity Care, and Policy Brief Commentaries Volume Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine Source Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine
ABFM Research Read all 2025 Regional Variation in Scope of Practice by Family Physicians Go to Regional Variation in Scope of Practice by Family Physicians 2014 Tectonic shifts are needed in graduate medical education to ensure today’s trainees are prepared to practice as tomorrow’s physicians Go to Tectonic shifts are needed in graduate medical education to ensure today’s trainees are prepared to practice as tomorrow’s physicians 2019 How Physicians Prepare for Maintenance of Certification Exams: A Qualitative Study Go to How Physicians Prepare for Maintenance of Certification Exams: A Qualitative Study 2018 Rural Family Physicians Have a Broader Scope of Practice Than Urban Family Physicians Go to Rural Family Physicians Have a Broader Scope of Practice Than Urban Family Physicians
2025 Regional Variation in Scope of Practice by Family Physicians Go to Regional Variation in Scope of Practice by Family Physicians
2014 Tectonic shifts are needed in graduate medical education to ensure today’s trainees are prepared to practice as tomorrow’s physicians Go to Tectonic shifts are needed in graduate medical education to ensure today’s trainees are prepared to practice as tomorrow’s physicians
2019 How Physicians Prepare for Maintenance of Certification Exams: A Qualitative Study Go to How Physicians Prepare for Maintenance of Certification Exams: A Qualitative Study
2018 Rural Family Physicians Have a Broader Scope of Practice Than Urban Family Physicians Go to Rural Family Physicians Have a Broader Scope of Practice Than Urban Family Physicians