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Family Docs

Family Docs

By: California AFP
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 A family medicine podcast from the California Academy of Family Physicians. For more information, visit www.familydocs.org/podcast.2023-2025 Economics Hygiene & Healthy Living Management Management & Leadership Physical Illness & Disease
Episodes
  • Recapturing the Joy in Medicine

    Recapturing the Joy in Medicine
    Aug 19 2025
    On this episode of the Family Docs Podcast, Dr. Cynthia Chen-Joea discusses physician wellness and the pursuit to recapture the joy in medicine with Drs. Lauren Brown-Berchtold and Kim Yu. Guests: Cynthia Chen-Joea, DO, MPH, CPH, FAAFP - Dr. Cynthia Chen-Joea is a physician career and life coach, double board-certified in Family Medicine and Obesity Medicine, and the founder of Thrivation, dedicated to coaching early-career physicians break free from burnout and build sustainable, fulfilling careers. She is also the co-founder of Physician Contract Negotiation, empowering physicians to advocate for their worth and navigate their careers with confidence. She serves as the Director of Inpatient Medicine at Charles Drew Family Medicine Residency Program and Medical Director of Copa de Oro Medical Group. Her previous leadership positions include, Physician Advisor, Secretary-Treasurer of the Medical Staff and Department Chair of Family Medicine at Emanate Health. A passionate advocate for physician well-being and healthcare transformation, Dr. Chen-Joea has held multiple leadership roles at the local, state, and national levels working in advocacy within her specialty organization. She currently serves as the New Physician member on the AAFP Board of Directors, working to create a more sustainable future in medicine. Kim Yu, MD, FAAFP, DABFM - Dr. Kim Yu is a national and international speaker, executive family physician leader, past president of the Michigan Academy of Family Physicians, and current Speaker of the California Academy of Family Physicians. Based out of California, Dr. Yu lives to #inspirecreatelead and currently works at the American Board of Family Medicine as the PRIME National Strategy Consultant and as Director of Health Care Strategy at KCS Inc., a multisite FQHC in Orange County, CA, serving the Asian community and the underserved in Southern California. Dr. Yu has served as the chair for the AAFP's Global Health Member Interest Group and as convener for WONCA's Special Interest Group in Health Equity. She currently serves on the AAFP delegation to the AMA, Wonca Working Party of Women in Family Medicine - USA country lead, and has interests in physician wellbeing, population health, practice management, health IT, value based care, global health, health equity, advocacy, disaster relief, and a wide range of primary care topics. Lauren Brown-Berchtold, MD, FAAFP - Dr. Lauren Brown-Berchtold is the program director for the Valley Consortium for Medical Education (VCME) Family Medicine Residency program in Modesto, California. She previously was a core faculty member and later program director of San Joaquin General Hospital for 8 years in total. She graduated from Keck School of Medicine of USC in Los Angeles, then joined John Peter Smith Hospital in Fort Worth, Texas, to complete her family medicine residency and Maternal-Child Health fellowship equivalent training. Dr. Brown-Berchtold is a fervent advocate for physician mental health protections and burnout prevention, and spends a lot of extracurricular time working on this topic nationally. When away from the hospital, she loves to read as well as explore life with her husband and very active daughter! Resources: https://www.aafp.org/pubs/fpm/issues/2018/0700/p38.html Dr. Kim Yu Finds ‘Reason for Being’ in Family Medicine Advocacy - https://www.theabfm.org/dr-kim-yu-finds-reason-for-being-in-family-medicine-advocacy/ Ikigai - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ikigai / https://positivepsychology.com/ikigai/ 26 hours of work per day: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11606-022-07707-x Weidner AKH, Phillips RL Jr, Fang B, Peterson LE. Burnout and Scope of Practice in New Family Physicians [published correction appears in Ann Fam Med. 2018 Jul;16(4):289. doi: 10.1370/afm.2281]. Ann Fam Med. 2018;16(3):200-205. doi:10.1370/afm.2221 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5951247/ Pixar Films mentioned - Inside Out and Inside Out 2 Learned helplessness - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4920136/ Job crafting - Amy Wrzesniewski - https://hbr.org/2010/06/managing-yourself-turn-the-job-you-have-into-the-job-you-want Baader-Meinhof phenomenon / frequency illusion - https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/basics/frequency-illusion Nine recs for physician wellbeing for c-suite article: Shanafelt TD, Noseworthy JH. Executive Leadership and Physician Well-being: Nine Organizational Strategies to Promote Engagement and Reduce Burnout. Mayo Clin Proc. 2017;92(1):129-146. doi:10.1016/j.mayocp.2016.10.004. https://www.mayoclinicproceedings.org/article/S0025-6196(16)30625-5/pdf AMA Cost Of Burnout: https://edhub.ama-assn.org/steps-forward/interactive/16830405 Physician coaching: https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamainternalmedicine/fullarticle/2740206 Family Medicine POP: Prism of Practice conference, September 5-7, 2025 (San Diego) - www.familydocs.org/pop CAFP’s ...
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    53 mins
  • Vaccines with Dr. Alex McDonald

    Vaccines with Dr. Alex McDonald
    Aug 12 2025

    On this episode of the Family Docs Podcast, we talk with Dr. Alex McDonald about vaccines – what family docs need to know now about vaccines, trends in vaccination rates, breaking and addressing vaccine myths, having vaccine conversations with patients, and how you can start getting involved in advocacy.

    Guests:

    • Alex McDonald MD, FAAFP, CAQSM is a former professional triathlete, Family and Sports Medicine physician and Associate Program Director of the Kaiser Permanente Fontana Family Medicine Residency Program. Dr. McDonald is an AAFP and CAFP media spokesperson and social media ambassador with a passion for family physicians to raise their voice for their patients. Dr. McDonald regularly writes for the Physician’s Weekly and contributes to the Physician’s Weekly podcast. Dr. McDonald is a recipient of the 2025 AAFP Vaccine Science Fellowship and recently was awarded the California Immunization Coalition’s 2025 Ronald P. Bangasser, Immunization Leadership Award.

    Resources:

    • “Vaccine Misinformation, Pseudoscience, & the Frailty of Community Health” by Alex McDonald, MD, CAQSM, FAAFP - Dr. McDonald explores how vaccine misinformation and pseudoscience undermine public health and calls for a return to trust, truth, and evidence-based care. (https://www.physiciansweekly.com/post/vaccine-misinformation-pseudoscience-the-frailty-of-community-health)

    • Family Medicine POP: Prism of Practice conference, September 5-7, 2025 (San Diego) - www.familydocs.org/pop

    • CAFP’s All Member Advocacy Meeting (AMAM), March 14-16, 2026 (Sacramento) - www.familydocs.org/amam

    Information:

    The Family Docs Podcast is hosted by Rob Assibey, MD, FAAFP and Cynthia Chen-Joea, DO, FAAFP.

    The Family Docs podcast is developed, produced, and recorded by the California Academy of Family Physicians. The views and opinions expressed in this program are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of any entities they represent or the California Academy of Family Physicians. More information at www.familydocs.org/podcast.

    Visit the California Academy of Family Physicians online at www.familydocs.org.

    Follow us on social media:

    • Twitter - https://twitter.com/cafp_familydocs

    • Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/cafp_familydocs

    • Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/familydocs

    • LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/company/california-academy-of-family-physicians

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    38 mins
  • Hear Me: Stories to Challenge OUD Stigma - Kshe's Story (S03E04)

    Hear Me: Stories to Challenge OUD Stigma - Kshe's Story (S03E04)
    Jun 4 2025
    Hear Me: Stories to Challenge OUD Stigma - Series Summary: In this series, we amplify the voices of individuals who have navigated the healthcare system while facing stigma related to opioid use, race, identity, pregnancy, and trauma. Through raw, personal narratives like Joey’s and Kshe’s (KAY-she), you are invited to listen deeply — not only to the stories , but also to the systemic challenges and human truths they reveal. These short, powerful episodes are a call to action: to reflect, to empathize, and to change. Because compassionate care begins when we choose to hear. Episode: Kshe’s Story: Pregnancy, Substance Use and the Power of Compassionate Care Featuring: Kshe BernardValery Shuman, ATR-BC, LCPC, Co-Founder, Sana Healing Collective Summary: Faced with judgment and fear during her pregnancy, Kshe (KAY-she) found hope in one provider’s compassion—her story is a powerful reminder that empathy in medicine can change lives. As You Listen to Kshe’s Story, Consider: How does stigma impact the willingness of pregnant individuals with SUD to seek medical care? What assumptions might you hold—consciously or unconsciously—about people who use drugs while pregnant? How can you integrate trauma-informed, compassionate care into your practice? Kshe’s story highlights the life-changing impact of compassionate care. As a healthcare clinician, your approach matters. How you speak to, treat, and engage with patients can either serve as a barrier or as a bridge to care. Consider what changes you can make in your practice—whether through language, policy advocacy, or patient interactions—to help dismantle stigma and foster trust. Compassion isn’t just an ideal—it’s an intervention. How will you use it? Resources: Pregnancy and Substance Use: A Harm Reduction Toolkit: https://harmreduction.org/issues/pregnancy-and-substance-use-a-harm-reduction-toolkit/Drawing on Black and Queer Communities' Harm Reduction Histories to Improve Overdose Prevention Strategies: https://journalofethics.ama-assn.org/article/drawing-black-and-queer-communities-harm-reduction-histories-improve-overdose-prevention-strategies/2024-07“I'm a Health Nut!” Street Drug Users' Accounts of Self-Care Strategies: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/002204260503500311CO*RE Pain Management Education Consortium: https://core-rems.org/CAFP's Substance Use Disorder Resources: familydocs.org/sud Details: This podcast series was developed by Interstate Postgraduate Medical Association (IPMA) and the California Academy of Family Physicians (CAFP) through the Collaborative for REMS Education (CO*RE) partnership. This activity is supported by an independent educational grant from the Opioid Analgesics REMS Program Companies (RPC). For more information about the Opioid Analgesics REMS, visit https://opioidanalgesicrems.com/RpcUI/products.u. The views and opinions expressed in this program are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of any entities they represent, IPMA, or the California Academy of Family Physicians. Copyright CAFP 2025 The Family Docs Podcast is hosted by Rob Assibey, MD, FAAFP. The Family Docs podcast is developed, produced, and recorded by the California Academy of Family Physicians. The views and opinions expressed in this program are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of any entities they represent or the California Academy of Family Physicians. More information at www.familydocs.org/podcast. Visit the California Academy of Family Physicians online at www.familydocs.org. Follow us on social media: Twitter - https://twitter.com/cafp_familydocs Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/cafp_familydocs Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/familydocs
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    29 mins
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