Chapter Newsletter—December 2024
Happiest of holidays from your Heart of Texas chapter of the TAFP!
As the end of 2024 approaches, we hope you and your families have had a safe and happy holiday season. We look forward to seeing and hearing from you in 2025 as we continue serving and growing our Central Texas community!
As always, please let us know if you have suggestions—click the button below to make a contribution to the next edition!
Getting together in groups large and small
It was wonderful to see each others’ faces, share space and time (and food and drinks!), and foster connection this year at our annual meeting in September and at our holiday happy hour in December! Stay tuned for more chances to get together with your fellow members in the new year—and if you’re interested in helping to plan more events like these throughout 2025, join the engagement committee!
2024 Annual Member Meeting
Holiday Happy Hour @ Hold Out Brewing
Resource finds
In each edition we’ll highlight resources for family physicians that may have flown under your radar—if you have a go-to resource that you think your colleagues may not know about, drop it in the newsletter dropbox!
We want YOU—to join the Bylaws Working Group!
One of our goals for 2025 is to review and update the chapter bylaws. This working group will define the chapter’s purpose and plans by formulating appropriate mission and vision statements, update the bylaws to reflect the chapter’s current and future activities, and ensure the chapter’s activities support the mission and vision.
Meetings will commence early next year. This critical work will shape the chapter for years to come, and we hope you’ll be a part of it. Use our contact form or email infoheartoftexas@gmail.com to join!
A day in the life
[COMING NEXT EDITION]
Have you had an interesting experience or interaction at your practice lately? A conversation with a patient or another physician that you found yourself thinking about long after it happened? This section will host short anecdotes and reflections from you and your fellow members! If you have a story you’d like to put down into 75-200 words and share here, send it to us in our newsletter dropbox!
Mark your calendar
FEB. 19 — AAFP | Family Medicine Board Review Express Livestream
Wednesday, February 19—Saturday, February 22, 2025 (online)
Get an in-depth board review to prepare for the ABFM exam from your home or office. Learn more here.
HoTX | Spring Chapter Grant Cycle
Call for applications will be sent to all members, including all relevant dates and deadlines and a copy of the application!
MAR. 23 — AAFP | Physician Health and Well-being Conference
Monday, March 24—Wednesday, March 26, 2025 in Hilton Head Island, SC
Rejuvenate, build connections, and explore strategies to balance the demands of your life. Learn more and register here.
MAR. 25 — AAFP | Residency Leadership Summit
Tuesday, March 25—Thursday, March 27, 2025 in Kansas City, MO
The only national event for both MDs and DOs that focuses solely on the needs of family medicine residency programs. Learn more and register here.
APR. 4 — TAFP | C. Frank Webber Lectureship and Interim Session
Friday, April 4—Saturday, April 5, 2025 in Round Rock, TX
[CFW HAS MOVED! New location: Kalahari Resorts & Conventions at 3001 Kalahari Boulevard, Round Rock, TX 78665]
Interim Session is one of two annual meetings of the Academy’s Board of Directors, its councils, and committees. We have a Member Assembly with presentations from TAFP’s councils, and plenty of time for discussion and grassroots input from TAFP members to guide the work of the organization. Learn more here.
REMINDER: Licenses expiring in January, February or March may be eligible for renewal online — visit the TMB renewal page for more information and to access the registration/renewal portal.
Awards corner
Our next grants cycle and scholarships for medical students and residents will be opening in the spring—watch this space!
Want to help give money to worthy local causes and area students and residents in financial need? Join our Awards Committee!
Et cetera
Chocolate lovers (everyone?), this one’s for you. Food scientists in Switzerland have recently discovered a new method to make the world’s most popular candy using the entire cocoa fruit — and without adding any sugar. Read about it here: BBC News — Have Swiss scientists made a chocolate breakthrough?
Things that don’t quite fit elsewhere. Sometimes related to the field, sometimes not. Have a suggestion? Drop it here!
Helpful links
AAFP
TAFP
Texas Medical Association
Austin Public Health
Travis County Medical Society
CDC
MMWR