Are you a family medicine, internal medicine or pediatric physician or PA who wants to be a healthcare superstar? Are you ready to advance your leadership skills? Are you ready to be a thought-leader? If the answer is yes, then we welcome you to apply for the Morehouse School of Medicine Community Health Advanced by Medical Practice Superstars (CHAMPS) Transformational Leadership Fellowship to gain leadership skills and expertise in transforming your practice and your community.
CHAMPS is a year-long Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) funded fellowship that educates and empowers early to mid-career physicians and physician assistants, practicing in medically underserved areas, rural communities, and federally qualified health centers (FQHC’s) who are currently in emerging leadership roles. After completing this program, participants will be ready to lead change and advocate for health equity within their institutions, surrounding communities, and at the local, state, and national levels
Purpose
This program strives to strengthen primary care and the healthcare workforce by establishing fellowship programs to train practicing community-based, primary-care physician and/or physician assistant champions to lead health care transformation and enhance teaching in community-based settings. Characteristics of transformed healthcare delivery systems identified by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services include:
- Integrated or virtually integrated delivery models across the care continum;
- Coordinated care across all providers and settings;
- A high level of patient engagement and quantifiable improvements in patient experiences;
- Leveraging the use of health information technology to improve quality;
- Providers performing at the top of their license and board certification;
- Integration of population health measures into the delivery system: and
- Data-driven health system processes.
HRSA also recognizes addressing social determinants of health as a characteristic of transformed healthcare delivery systems.
Objectives
- Develop leadership capacity in healthcare transformation for primary-care professionals;
- Increase integrated and coordinated care services within and between care settings;
- Improve the quality of care in healthcare organizations; and
- Increase patient access to care.
Benefits
HRSA will provide physicians and physician assistants who have completed Primary Care Transformation Executive (PCTE) fellowships with priority status when applying for National Health Service Corps (NHSC) Loan Repayment (LRP) awards. Participants in the NHSC LRP, NHSC Scholarship Program, and NHSC Students to Service LRP interested in participating in a PCTE primary-care leadership fellowship program may convert to a half-time contract and continue satisfying their service obligation.
Each fellow will:
- Earn CME through leadership, integrated health, and quality improvement course instruction
- Engage in practical leadership and quality improvement instruction through virtual, clinic, and in-person site visits
- Participate in monthly coaching sessions by MSM faculty and related SMEs
- Complete a healthcare transformation project with a focus on one of the three HHS priorities — childhood obesity, mental health and opioid abuse — to benefit your practice and community
- Build leadership skills that strengthen change processes in organizations
- Receive support in presenting and publishing their Healthcare Transformation Project (HTP)
- Join a network of CHAMPS fellows to serve as mentors to future CHAMPS superstars
CHAMPS 2021 - 2022 Fellow Bios
- Dr. Cecil Bennett
Dr. Cecil F. Bennett. Jr. completed his undergraduate studies at Syracuse University, earning a degree in Biology. Later, he continued his education at Morehouse School of Medicine. During his fourth year in medical school, Dr. Bennett became president of the Student Government Association.
Upon the completion of medical school, Dr. Bennett finished up his training in Family Medicine at Morehouse, where he served as Chief Resident in his final year. Once he completed his residency, he became and keeps to this day his Board Certification by the American Board of Family Medicine. He served on the Morehouse School of Medicine Board of Trustees. He previously was an Associate Dean of Medical Education for Washington Adventist University and is currently Adjunct Faculty, for the Morehouse School of Medicine Department of Family Medicine.
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Dr. Porsha Butler
Dr. Porsha Butler, a National Health Service Scholar, is a Board-Certified pediatrician in Rockledge, Florida. She completed her undergraduate studies at Florida International University where she also competed in track and field and won a javelin championship. After returning to her hometown to teach high school math and science, she continued her path to medicine by way of attendance at Morehouse School of Medicine. It was there that she found her growing interest in primary care and serving underserved communities like the one where she was raised.
After completing her residency training in Las Vegas with UNLV, she returned close to home in Orlando to serve as chief resident with Nemours Children's Hospital. She has since began working with an FQHC, the Brevard Health Alliance in her hometown. Dr. Butler has a special interest in childhood obesity and enjoys coaching and physical activities within the community.
- Dr. Kenny Esho
Dr. Kenny Esho is a Board-Certified Pediatrician and clinical lab director at Athens Neighborhood Health Center. He has been with the federally qualified health center since July 2017. Dr. Esho completed his undergraduate studies at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University. He then attended Morehouse School of Medicine; completed pediatric training at Medical College of Georgia.
He is an assistant clinical professor with the AU/UGA partnership where he teaches 3rd year medical students during their pediatric clerkship. Dr. Esho is a fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics and serves as a member of the Georgia AAP executive board representing Athens and the surrounding areas. He is passionate about preventative primary care, childhood literacy and adolescent medicine.
- Dr. Matthew Findlay
Dr. Matthew Findlay attended Cornell University for his undergraduate studies, majoring in mathematics, and attended medical school at New York Medical College. He then moved south in search of warmer climates and completed residency at CMC Family Medicine before starting his term as PGY-4 Chief Resident and Junior Faculty Fellow. He is Board-Certified in Family Medicine, and works as an attending physician at Elizabeth Family Medicine, in addition to his duties as Chief Resident and Fellow.
He has special interests in medical education, clinical and diagnostic reasoning, diabetes management, the treatment of chronic pain, and addiction medicine. He is currently performing a quality improvement project involving medication assisted treatment (MAT). Outside his work, he spends his time being active with his church, pursuing a wide range of outdoor activities, and spending time with his wife and daughter.
- Dr. Jacqueline Michel
Dr. Jacqueline Michel is a general pediatrician and Clinical Assistant Professor at the University of Florida College of Medicine. Dr. Michel has a passion for preventive health care and guiding patients and families to achieve their goals for healthy lifestyle habits. This has played a major role in her work focusing on pediatric obesity care and research.
Dr. Michel received her undergraduate degree from the University of Minnesota Duluth. However, she always desired to live in a warmer climate and moved to Florida to attend medical school at the Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine in Bradenton, Florida. She then went on to complete her pediatric residency at the University of Florida and has stayed there to continue her career in pediatrics.
- Dr. Marche’ T. Smith
Dr. Marche’ T. Smith is an original native of Nashville, TN and later relocated to Saginaw, MI. She received her Bachelor of Science in Biology with a pre-medicine concentration from Jackson State University in 2011. She then continued her education at Meharry Medical College in Nashville, TN where she graduated with a Doctor of Medicine degree with honors in 2016. She completed her pediatric residency training at Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta, GA where she currently serves at an Assistant Professor and Board-Certified Pediatrician and International Board-Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) providing care in inpatient and outpatient settings at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta-Hughes Spalding and as a newborn hospitalist at Emory Decatur Hospital.
She also serves a Faculty Lead Instructor for Pediatric Simulation sessions for medical student education during the third year Pediatric Clerkship Rotation. She is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and the Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine. She has special interests in community engagement, childhood obesity prevention, and breastfeeding among minority populations, for which she is a member of the Georgia Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics’ Breastfeeding Committee.
Apply
Applications are currently being accepted for the 2022-2023 Cohort. Please apply online below.
For more information contact Christopher Ervin, M.D. or Krystle Richardson.
This project is/was supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under Grant #T13HP31903, Primary Care Training and Enhancement: Training Primary Care Champions for $1,985,744. This information or content and conclusions are those of the author and should not be construed as the official position or policy of, nor should any endorsements be inferred by HRSA, HHS or the U.S. Government.