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I am Pete Olson and I am from Rylander, WI. I am in the Medical School at the University
of Minnesota and I just came from the RPAP program. RPAP broadened my view of family
medicine. I came to understand family medicine as this relational art that is about meeting
patients’ health care needs over time. A specialist will see a patient for a procedure
or a follow-up visit, but the family medicine physician has a very different role. It’s
that of being an always available resource for patients, who really works with the most
common medical illnesses that patient have everyday. And then as part of that, it’s
about really coordinating their care, even when it comes to specialty services. It’s
about providing direct patient care and education, but in RPAP you learn that it’s important
to be part of the leadership that guides the organization that provides care. Another level
of care, to advocate for your patients on would be in government—at local, state and
even national levels, to assure they have access to the care you are providing. I guess
one of the best things I gained from RPAP was the understanding of the real benefits
of family medicine and that’s about relationships with patients. That is what makes a career
in medicine satisfying.