AAFP Elects New Members to Board of Directors

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Friday, October 27, 2023 

Contact: 
Adrieanna Norse
Public Relations Coordinator
anorse@aafp.org

CHICAGO, IL — The American Academy of Family Physicians held elections for its 2023-2024  this week at its annual Congress of Delegates, the organization’s governing body. Members of the board of directors advocate on behalf of family physicians, residents, medical students and patients nationwide to inspire positive change in the U.S. health care system. The AAFP represents nearly 130,000 physicians and medical students.

“On behalf of the AAFP, I am pleased to welcome our new members and officers of the board of directors. Each member brings unique strengths, experiences and perspective that will be critical in helping the AAFP best serve family physicians and their patients,” said R. Shawn Martin, CEO and executive vice president of the AAFP. “I know the board will work tirelessly to ensure that our members can continue to rely on the AAFP for guidance, resources and education. These family physician leaders will also be fierce advocates for policies that positively impact family physicians and the communities in which they serve. I look forward to supporting the meaningful work they do during their time on the board.” 

New Board of Directors Officers

• Steven P. Furr, MD, FAAFP, is president of the AAFP. Furr is a family physician in Jackson, Alabama, where he co-founded the Family Medical Clinic of Jackson, which supports a small rural hospital and a local nursing home. Furr has cared for patients for more than 39 years.
  
  
• Jen Brull, MD, FAAFP, was elected president-elect of the AAFP. Brull is a family physician in Fort Collins, Colorado. She practiced family medicine in rural Kansas for 20 years and now serves as vice president of clinical engagement for Aledade, a company that partners with independent primary care physicians to succeed in value-based care. 
  
  
• Tochi Iroku-Malize, MD, MPH, MBA, FAAFP, is board chair of the AAFP. She is a family physician in Long Island, New York. She serves as founding chair and professor of family medicine for the Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell in Hempstead, New York, and chair of the Department of Family Medicine for Northwell Health. She previously served as the AAFP’s president.
  
  
• Russell W. Kohl, MD, FAAFP, was re-elected speaker of the AAFP Congress of Delegates. Kohl is a family physician living in Stilwell, Kansas, and serves as chief medical officer with TMF Health Quality Institute, a Medicare quality improvement organization serving Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri, Texas, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
  
  
• Daron W. Gersch, MD, FAAFP, was re-elected vice-speaker of the AAFP Congress of Delegates. He is a family physician with CentraCare in Long Prairie, Minnesota, where he also serves as the emergency room medical and trauma director at CentraCare’s critical care hospital. Gersch also currently serves as the medical director at Mother of Mercy nursing home in Albany, Minnesota. 

New Board Members

These individuals were elected to three-year terms as members of the board of directors:

• Sarah Sams, MD, FAAFP, serves as an associate director and full-time faculty member at Grant Family Medicine Residency in Columbus, Ohio, where she provides full-spectrum family medicine, including obstetrics and minor office-based procedures. 
  
  
• Brent Smith, MD, MSc, MLS, FAAFP, is a family physician in Cleveland, Mississippi. As a first-generation doctor, Smith developed a passion for family medicine during his third year of medical school at the University of Mississippi School of Medicine.
  
  
• Jeffrey Zavala, MD, FAAFP, is the Montana/Northern Wyoming chief medical officer for the Intermountain Health medical group. Throughout his career, he has been involved with the AAFP and state chapters with the goal of serving family physicians. 

These individuals were elected to one-year terms:

• Matthew Adkins, DO, is the new physician member of the board of directors. He is an assistant program director at Grant Family Medicine Residency in Columbus, Ohio, with clinical and teaching emphasis in LGBTQ+ and sexual health, HIV, addiction, and health equity.
  
  
• Janet Nwaukoni, DO, is the resident member of the board of directors. She is a third-year medical resident at the Northwestern McGaw Family Medicine Residency Program at Lake Forest in Illinois and a native of Queens, New York. As a medical student, Nwaukoni served on the board of directors for the Student National Medical Association. After transitioning into residency, she became involved with the AAFP and was elected resident delegate to the Congress of Delegates. 
  
  
• Taree Chadwick is the student member of the board of directors. She is a third-year medical student at the University of Nevada, Reno School of Medicine. At the AAFP, Chadwick has served as the student delegate to the Congress of Delegates, a reference committee member at the National Conference of Family Medicine Residents and Medical Students, a member of the Commission on Education and the national FMIG Network coordinator.

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