This curriculum is based on the book, Family Practice Stories, an oral history. It is a large collection of stories told by, or about, 48 family doctors practicing in the mid-20th century. Each story reveals much about their style of practice and how they touched the lives of their patients and their communities. The book was a project of the Indiana Academy of Family Physicians Foundation and was also supported by the AAFP Foundation. All royalties from the book benefit the IAFP/AAFP Foundations (the author has no financial interest in the book). The discussion is placed in the context of the lives and values of family medicine’s grassroots founding fathers, whose values the specialty emulates today. From the collective wisdom of these doctors, there are lessons to be learned. Importantly, contemporary stories from participants are added to the discussion.
Presented here is a curriculum that is meant to be a resource for a longitudinal teaching experience in ethics and professionalism in a group setting of residents and faculty. The audience is introduced to the curriculum and facilitator's guide for utilizing selected stories from the book for group discussion. During the workshop, the background of the book and review of the study and facilitator's guide will be discussed. We will read several stories and review the suggested discussion questions for each of the stories read. We will conduct a simulated group discussion of each story with the entire audience, much like what would occur in a residency program.