First Five

FFYFP Blog – CME for You and Me

By Dr. Tyler Hunter Now that you have left academic half days behind in residency, obtaining continuing medical education (CME) can be another burden on your already busy schedule. The minimum CME requirements set by the CFPC are: Instead of slogging through entering 250 UpToDate credits, below are a few ideas of how to reach…

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FFYFP Blog – “Spooky Situations in the Office”

By Dr. Charissa Ho It is spooky season! With that, let’s talk about the scary situations we can encounter in our family medicine offices and how we can deal with them. Spooky Situation 1: Upset patient in the clinic. You’re going about your day when one of the MOAs knocks on your door. Knock, knock….

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A Week in the Life – First Five Years in Family Practice

Introduction by Dr. Charissa Ho, Chair, ACFP FFYFP Committee So, the Canadian Resident Matching Service (CaRMS) applications have already started. Those who are considering their specialty of choice may be thinking “Why should I apply to family medicine programs?” Well, the First Five Years in Family Practice (FFYFP) Committee has come together to provide you…

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Surviving the First Five Years

By Michelle Chow MD, CCFP, BSc (Hons), NCMP The practice of medicine can be a rewarding, but challenging journey. Reflecting back on my first five years of family practice, there are several things I wish I knew about earlier or could have used more. Here are some tips for surviving the first five years: While…

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FFYFP Blog: Five Tips to Leave by Five

In this month’s installment of the First Five Years in Family Practice Oh My Blog! series, Dr. Hunter shares five tips to scheduling your day to help you leave work on time. If you try one of these tips, let us know how it went, or provide your own suggestions in the comments below! Written…

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FFYFP Blog: First Five Years of (Rural) Family Practice

Written by: Dr. Everett Zdrill Joining a rural practice or maybe scheduling a locum? Here are some of the lessons I’ve learned in my first five years in rural medicine: Embrace the Challenges The challenges of rural medicine can include, but are not limited to, a lack of resources, a high patient load, limited access…

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FFYFP Blog: Keeping the passion alive

Written by: Dr. Michelle Chow You’ve finally made it – after countless years of schooling and residency, you are finally practicing medicine. I remember the initial years as a staff physician being full of excitement and hope. I would start the day thinking about how lucky I was to be in my position. I was…

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FFYFP Blog: Fill Your Cup in Your Community 

Written by: Dr. Jovita Beyer Hello, my name is Jovita Beyer and I am a full service family physician who works out of Spruce Grove, Stony Plain, and the Misericordia Hospital.  Recently, like most of us in family medicine, I have been feeling the moral distress of our profession. Demand from patients, the government, and…

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FFYFP Blog: Big Bucks: Better Billing

Written by: Dr. Tyler Hunter You’re already taking time with every patient, phoning that family member on your lunch break and checking your labs on weekends. Money doesn’t solve everything, but you might as well get paid appropriately for your hard work.   BILLING TIPS I want to start out with a few general billing tips that…

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FFYFP Blog: Medicine for the Gender Spectrum

Written by: Dr. Charissa Ho For most of us, there was very little (if any) exposure to transgender medicine or people who identify as gender diverse during our training. I was fortunate to have the opportunity to locum for Dr. James Makokis in Edmonton, who guided me through my introduction to caring for people who…

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