AAFP members are required to belong to both the national organization and one of 55 constituent chapters, representing all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Uniformed Services, Guam, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.

Remington Brown said getting involved at the chapter level allows members to network with colleagues, support future family physicians, drive policy, participate in advocacy and create CME opportunities.

“In Kansas, our members love their state, their communities and their patients. Being able to share in that with other family docs is invaluable to them,” she said.

The FMCA awards grants of up to $7,000 to support member outreach, public health and student/resident projects selected through peer review. Remington Brown’s project was among those chosen in 2024.

In Kansas, AAFP resident membership fees (national and local) are covered by family medicine residency programs. Once out of residency, they must renew their memberships and pick up the cost. For a new physician who’s focused on starting a practice and repaying their loans, it’s tempting to simply let their membership lapse.

In response, the KAFP has reduced its membership fees for new physicians and is exploring additional ways to serve this important group.

First, they developed a new physician advocacy group led by a new physician board member, Remington Brown explained. The group expressed a need for more resources, including mentoring services, financial advice and employment contract reviews. The FMCA grant enables the chapter to partner with a financial advisor and legal firm to help guide members as they pay down their loans and begin their careers as family physicians.

In the short term, Remington Brown hopes these efforts will encourage new physicians to not only stay on as members but to actively engage with the KAFP during that period of transition, when networking with peers is so beneficial.

Longer term, her goal is to foster these relationships so new physicians stay lifelong members and give back to the association with their time, talent and expertise down the road.

“These are our future board chairs and delegates,” she said. “They are the future.”

Remington Brown said the KAFP has applied for (and been awarded) Chapter Alliance grants in previous years and appreciates the ease of the online application and the valuable feedback the AAFP Foundation provides.

“My advice is to get your members involved,” she added. “For someone to say, ‘Here’s an opportunity for you to access funds and address a member need if you’re really innovative with it’ — that doesn’t happen every day.”

In addition to its Grant Awards program, the FMCA provides annual Chapter Engagement Grants of $750 to each chapter/foundation selected, to support their promotional efforts through member communications, social media and paid ads.

Both grant applications are open annually from January 1 to February 28. Visit the Family Medicine Chapter Alliance section for more information.