Tomorrow is a big day. When @Acpinternists meets a new Council of Residents and Fellows ( #CRFM) will be approved and I’ll be its chair. I don’t get to tell my story to my new team in person, so I’m doing it here. Get ready for a long thread (1/12)

I’ve been part of this group since I was a PGY-2 @YNHH IM/PC, and joined because mentors ( @alikhan28) and some of the coolest senior residents ( @AlexNorcott). And when I joined the chair-elect was my friend from New Orleans ( @sarahgcandler ) and my chair ( @FzsyedMd ) was a boss.

I joined because I wanted to work on improving residency training in high-value care, promote understanding of MACRA, MIPS and APMs, and fight for whatever it took to get to #UniversalCoverage. The @ACPInternists has been great about moving these forward. https://bit.ly/2VLEYrK 

What I didn’t expect was the sheer brilliance and fun of the team, the likes of @DeepShahMD, @ravi_b_parikh , @SusanLouMD, @RahulBanerjeeMD and the rest were fun, committed, and cared about what I cared about. I love my residency friends too #YPCHugs but this crew was special.

My first resolution was suggesting that the #Netflix pricing plan for HCV direct acting antivirals that @LADeptHealth was using to avoid financial catastrophe and get 1/3 of Louisiana access to curative therapy, and I was hooked.

The #CRFM chair plunked me on the Health and Public Policy Committee with @sue_bornstein who taught me how to lead a committee, along with @PDX_Tom & @docwithapurpose, and we got to work on the gun violence prevention paper that led to #ThisIsOurLane. https://bit.ly/2xKXQPD 

So I applied to be #CRFM chair-elect because I wanted to work on health reform and loved the @ACPinternists priorities. I also joined the @AmerMedicalAssn delegation for the ACP, because I believe in the policy and love the people.

As my chair-elect year closes, I’m heartbroken we’re losing @brianlblock, @NNolanMD, @GrantTurnerMD, @mtnelsonMD, @JesseRichardsDO, but so glad @FStPierreMD is able to stay on as chair-elect next year! We need her insight, perspective, and ability to connect across any audience.

We had carefully chosen our committee assignments, I asked our new team to ponder #DigitalHealth, #Disparities, #Advocacy, #PhysicianLedTeams,and #Burnout. Our new members already were stepping up with ideas.

And we have our new class! Our new #CRFM includes members from every corner of the US and every year of training. @USN_DMO, @PoojaJaeel, @JBurnettMD, @JacobPeoplesMD, @CShoush, @CGiordano1225, @trickettmd are already making their mark in #Advocacy and #Physicianledteams.

The rising class of @TheeBlackDoctor, @ArjunBGupta, @carlie_cerne, @Ashruta_Patel, and @RomelaPetrosyan are totally ready to take on the challenge of leading #CRFM workgroups, bringing our new members up to speed and contributing on their committees.

Because #COVID19 has changed so much, my first action as chair was challenge the #CRFM to consider what residents need at their hospitals and what we can do. Anyone reading this should chime in. Where can @ACPInternists further support the response? What does your hospital need?

Because we need groups like @ACPInternists more than ever in times of crisis. We advocate for stronger COVID policy and share clinical information in a physician organization 149,000 strong. The challenges of #COVID are great, but we have the right team. So let's get started.