ABFM and AAFP Garner Transforming Clinical Practice Initiative Award

Since 1998, Dr. Kevin Buckwalter has delivered family medical care, ranging from pediatrics to geriatrics, at his practice in Henderson, Nevada. Dr. Kevin Buckwalter is also a member of the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) and a certified Diplomate of the American Board of Family Medicine (ABFM).

In a recent press release, ABFM announced that it is one of the 39 health care collaborative networks chosen by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to contribute to the Transforming Clinical Practice Initiative (TCPI). The ABFM and the AAFP will receive as much as $538,000 to jointly help clinicians around the country gain access to the tools and network support required for more strategic health care spending, improved information accessibility for patients, and greater quality of care. With the awards, the ABFM and the AAFP will be able to support between 25,000 and 40,000 clinicians.

The organizations will foster practice transformation by facilitating access to a number of programs, including the PRIME Registry. The ABFM will help family physicians use the PRIME Registry to transform electronic health record data into materials that can be used to meet federal reporting requirements, improve practice quality, and enhance Maintenance of Certification (MOC).

Donating Blood to the American Red Cross

Kevin Buckwalter studied zoology and pre-medicine at the University of Nevada, Reno. During his time at the school, Kevin Buckwalter worked with the American Red Cross during blood donations.

Donating blood to the American Red Cross is an easy, yet critically important way to give back to a community. There are, however, a few requirements donors must fulfill before giving blood. A person must meet a certain standard of health, which necessarily rules out any individual with a communicable disease or virus. The average donor must be at least 17 years of age and weigh more than 110 pounds. Double red cell donors must meet more exact height and weight strictures; males must measure at 61 inches and 130 pounds, while females should be a minimum 65 inches and 150 pounds. For those who have already been approved as a donor and given blood, platelets, plasma, or double red cells, a period of time must pass before they are eligible to donate again. Blood donors, for example, can only donate once every 56 days. Individuals can easily make a blood donation appointment online at the American Red Cross website, where they simply need to enter their name and address in order to locate the nearest blood drive or donation site.