A professor in the MU School of Medicine has been elected president of the largest medical specialty group in the U.S.
Professor of Medicine David Fleming will serve as president-elect of the American College of Physicians beginning April 11, and his official presidency will begin in April 2014.
As president of the ACP, Fleming will represent the college at multiple national and international events. He will also be responsible for advising the Board of Regents in formulating policies.
The election results did not come as a surprise to Fleming, as there were only four or five individuals nominated by the Board of Regents, the policy-making branch of the ACP, Fleming said.
“I am very thrilled about this,” Fleming said. “It is an honor to be selected and represent the organization at a very high level.”
The ACP, founded in 1915, is the largest medical-specialty organization in the country. It has 133,000 members consisting of professionals, students, internal medicine sub-specialists and fellows.
“It started out as an education institution but has grown since then to educate and mentor internal medicine doctors,” said Alan Forker, governor of the Missouri chapter of the ACP in 2011. “The organization also monitors and responds to policy issues affecting the healthcare system.”
Fleming, a former governor of the Missouri chapter of the ACP, held a position on the board of governors for a year before joining the Board of Regents in 2012.
The board nominated Fleming for presidency, and he won by a majority, Forker said.
“(Fleming) is a great leader and contributor to policy formations,” Forker said. “I think his leadership, great voice and expertise helped him get to where he is. He is going to be a fabulous president.”
Fleming, who also serves as the director of the Center for Health Ethics and Chair of Internal Medicine at the MU School of Medicine, doesn’t think his titles had much to do with him being elected president.
“When we elect our officials, they are folks we trust to represent accurately and have the right skills to do the job,” Fleming said.
Anne Winkler, former governor of the Missouri chapter of ACP, believes Fleming has those qualities.
“He is a confident, ethical man who has always been dedicated to delivering and having access to quality healthcare,” Winkler said.
Winkler has known Fleming since she was in medical school in 1980. Fleming’s dedication to quality healthcare led him to practice as a general internist in Moberly, Mo., a small, rural community in north central Missouri for 20 years, Winkler said.
“I think that has been one of my most significant achievements so far,” Fleming said.
Fleming has received several awards for teaching and service, including the Distinguished Service Award from the MU Medical Alumni Organization and Faculty Member of the Year in the Department of Health Management and Informatics, but there is one award Fleming is particularly proud of.
“Of all the awards, the Jane Hickman Teacher of the Year Award from the MU School of Medicine, which I received in 2010, means the most to me,” Fleming said.
