by Jared Rutecki

Monday afternoon, students in Irvine 194 were treated to more than just lunch — they also were treated to an insightful and humorous presentation by Thomas Told, D.O., president of the American College of Osteopathic Family Physicians (ACOFP).

Told extolled the value and place of family practice in medicine. His “model,” Told said, was one given by A.T. Still, referring to the foundations of osteopathic medicine: surgery, obstetrics and general medicine. “Today, I still exemplify that,” he said, citing the varied cases encountered by the family practitioner. Told has a rural practice in Craig, Colo.

“In 2006, we still want to preserve family practice,” he said. ACOFP's advocacy of family medicine, development of leadership and commitment to building educational and training resources for physicians are key to that effort, he said.

Told is a 1973 graduate of Kirksville College of Osteopathic Medicine. In private family practice for 30 years, he received his board certification in 1987 and became an ACOFP Fellow in 1991. He is a recipient of the Distinguished Award for Outstanding Service to his community and the 1997 ACOFP Family Physician of the Year award. In 1993, he was named Colorado General Practitioner of the Year. He has served as ACOFP president since March 2006.

His presentation pointed out that family practice is equally important as a specialty, and that the depth of knowledge required for family practice is as great as it is for fields such as pediatrics, surgery or obstetrics. In his experience, he said, family practice covers the breadth of specialties.

“We may not know everything, but we know a little about everything,” Told said. “The thing I love about family practice is that I don’t know what kind of specialist I’m going to be when I get up in the morning.”

Told explained how the needs of a physician differed from the rural to the urban or hospital setting, and demonstrated how family practice allowed physicians to choose the setting in which they would practice. Family practice physicians also could tailor their practices to their needs and the needs of those they served, he said.

Told also told students they should learn a variety of medical procedures because, he said, “Procedures help pay the bills.” He has challenged members of ACOFP to learn a new procedure every year.

“If there’s a scope made to look into a hole of somebody’s body, man, I’ve got to have it,” Told exclaimed, making the humorous inference to illustrate the importance of learning how to use new technology. By learning new techniques, the family practice doctor can, in some instances, perform a procedure rather than sending the patient to a specialist.

A slideshow detailed several of the cases from Told’s practice, including a plastic surgery procedure performed on a patient whose lower lip had been bitten off by the family dog, as well as skin grafts and fixing fractures.

Students had an opportunity to ask questions, and Told answered questions ranging from how to tailor practices to different communities to dealing with the burden of malpractice.

“We really enjoyed his speech because it showed us that the field of family medicine is an important one that provides interesting practice opportunities,” says Abby Lader, a second-year student and president of the Family Practice Club. “I think that’s helpful in promoting the field.”