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  • Viewpoints

    Introducing AAMCNews

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    Darrell G. Kirch, MD

    For more than 45 years, the AAMC Reporter told the story of how America’s medical schools and teaching hospitals advance medical education, patient care, and research to improve the health of all. From highlighting how academic medicine responds in times of crisis, like in the aftermath of the Boston Marathon bombing or the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, to offering in-depth examinations of complex issues, such as the social determinants of health, the Reporter has served our community with insight and provided a forum for thoughtful dialogue. When I was a dean and medical center CEO, I read the Reporter to learn about the effective solutions my colleagues across the country were putting in place to tackle our most challenging issues. As president and CEO of the AAMC, I have appreciated the opportunity to contribute to the conversation myself through this monthly column.

    But the pace of change in academic medicine is accelerating, and the tools of communication have changed. A monthly print publication is no longer the best way to reach our constituents with timely news and updates. After much thought and many conversations, we decided to retire the AAMC Reporter. In its place we are launching AAMCNews, a dynamic, mobile-friendly digital destination for the latest news, current trends, and ongoing conversations about the most important topics in academic medicine. Rather than relying on a monthly print format, the site will be updated frequently to keep pace with events as they happen. Readers will receive weekly AAMCNews email updates with summaries of the new stories that have been added.

    Like its predecessor, AAMCNews focuses on news and features about America’s medical schools and teaching hospitals, and the people who make our institutions excel. In addition, it includes breaking updates on developing stories, as well as stories on current news and events. The digital format gives us room for an enhanced Perspectives section with more Viewpoint columns from members of the academic medicine community and other health care thought leaders. The site is rich with new media, including videos, photos, and dynamic and interactive features.

    A new section, “Academic Medicine in the News”, highlights the exciting work taking place at medical schools and teaching hospitals. This collection provides our community with a hub for the latest news from colleagues around the country who are developing medical education innovations, clinical care initiatives, and medical research breakthroughs. 

    Academic medicine is unique—our community brings together educators and learners, researchers and care providers, administrators and supporters of our nation’s medical schools and teaching hospitals. AAMCNews is the only place of its kind that combines these voices to showcase academic medicine at its best, reflect on our most pressing challenges, and craft a vision for the future of medical education, the advancement of research, and the delivery of quality care. By engaging experts across academic medicine, along with leading voices on health policy, we aim to bring greater context and diverse perspectives to the challenges we face as a community. Through AAMCNews, we hope to carry forward the Reporter’s legacy of informing and enhancing the conversation about how to accomplish our overarching mission to improve the health of all.