Goals of Family Medicine Partnership

Kansas

• Develop international faculty relationships and resources in support of efforts to strengthen academic credibility for family medicine at KU School of Medicine-Wichita.
• Learn clinical methods for working with limited resources among diverse populations.
• Establish opportunities for Kansas students to study in Paraguay.
• Develop opportunities to restructure health care using a family medicine-based model in order to better meet the needs of Kansas' population.

 Paraguay

• Develop faculty mentoring relationships and international resources in support of efforts to establish academic credibility for family medicine at Paraguayan medical schools.
• Obtain consultation regarding family medicine training at the predoctoral, residency and continuing medical education levels.
• Obtain resources, including computer support, for clinical care and medical education.
• Develop opportunities to restructure national health care using a family medicine-based model in order to better meet the needs of Paraguay's population.

Methods

• Series of bilateral 10-14 day faculty exchanges between family physicians in Paraguay and Kansas from 1986 to present.
• Activities:
  • Consultation with medical schools, residency programs, health care facilities
  • Meetings with medical and political leaders
  • Presentations by visiting faculty on clinical, health policy and medical education topics
  • One-to-one and small group consultation and mentoring
• Funded by
  • Partners of the Americas, Washington, D.C.

Results

• Medical Student Education
  • International elective in Paraguay for KUSM, established 2000. Twelve medical students from Wichita and 15 from Kansas City to date.
  • Department of Family Medicine faculty increased at Paraguayan medical schools.
• Residency Education
  • Increased residency programs in Paraguay from 1 to 7.
  • Residents increased from 15 to 120 per year.
• CME
  • Presentations to the Paraguay Society of Family Medicine and Kansas family physicians.
  • Postgraduate training to practicing physicians in rural Paraguay established through a government project in consultation with Dr. Kellerman.
• Material Support
  • Assisted financially in renovating a family medicine residency facility at the University medical complex, Asunción.
  • Purchased high speed computer for the Family Medicine center, Asunción, to access online literature.
• Faculty Development
  • Provided curriculum and precepting models for predoctoral family medicine community experiences.
  • Assisted Dr. Baran in her application to become STFM International Scholar and served as her translator at STFM.
  • Assisted in developing other U.S. family medicine contacts, including the American Academy of Family Physicians.

Conclusions
The exchange has met or exceeded most of its initial goals.

Future Plans
Both Paraguay and Kansas have ongoing challenges in family medicine education and health care policy leading to opportunities for future exchanges.