Primary Care Grand Rounds
Leadership for an Era of Crisis
Training leaders to transform systems and care for patients
Primary Care and health care at large need large scale transformation and innovation to shift to models that prioritize the quintuple aim (better outcomes, improved clinician experience, lower costs, improved patient experience, health equity). However many do not have the breadth of experience to know or evaluate the variety of innovative models that are available to them. With this series, we will seek to educate future primary care leaders, as well as current professionals, teams, and systems about diverse and innovative opportunities that continue to evolve, and how to implement them in their practices in order to best serve their patients.
Who should attend?
We value interprofessional dialogue and everyone is welcome to attend, including students and professionals. Everyone who attends a live Zoom session will receive a certificate of completion. Physicians may be eligible to receive CME credit. Details are below.
Prerecorded sessions
AI application in primary care
Primary care physicians need 26.27 hours per day to provide appropriate care and complete necessary documentation. The prevalence of chronic disease is increasing and access to preventative care is decreasing. Primary care needs a lifeline—could AI be the answer? What can AI do to help primary care physicians care for patients more efficiently and effectively? And what concerns should we have about AI in the clinical setting? What are its limitations? Join us for this upcoming grand rounds session as we talk with AI experts about these topics.
Panelists
- Philip Ciampa, MD, MPH
- Rebecca Mishuris, MD
- Matthew Sakumoto, MD
This course was recorded on Monday, March 31, 2025. CME credit is only given to participants with an MD who view the event live (not pre-recorded).
Primary Care Grand Rounds: Southcentral Foundation’s Nuka System of Care
During this session our panelists provided an overview of the Nuka System of Care. It's a relationship-based, customer-owned approach to transforming health care, improving outcomes, and reducing costs. Leaders from Southcentral Foundation, an Alaska Native-owned nonprofit health care organization serving nearly 70,000 Alaska Native and American Indian people, gave us a closer look at this system of care from a clinical and operational perspective.
Panelists
- Melissa Merrick, LCSW, MSW, Executive Vice President of Primary Care
- Michael Cooper, MD, Vice President of Valley and Villages
This course was recorded on March 3, 2025. CME credit is only given to participants with an MD who view the event live (not pre-recorded).
Primary Care Grand Rounds: Frontline Clinical Innovation
During this session, we explore the operational and patient-facing impacts of three unique innovations implemented in the primary care setting. Our panelists discussed how they are alleviating access issues by leaning into virtual care, restructuring models of care, and redesigning interprofessional teams that best support patient needs.
Panelists
- Nisha Basu, MD, MPH, Chief Clinical Officer at Firefly Health
- Marcelo Campos, MD, Family Medicine Physician, Atrius Health
- Rushika Fernandopulle, MD, MPP, Co-founder and CEO of Iora Health
This course was recorded on Feb. 25,2025. CME credit is only given to participants with an MD who view the event live (not pre-recorded).
National Primary Care Policy: Innovation, Financing, and Equity
This session explores recommendations of the recent NASEM report that examines the current state of primary care in the United States and outlines an implementation plan to strengthen primary care services in the United States, especially for underserved populations. Hear from NASEM standing committee members about national primary care policy on topics including innovation, financing, and equity.
Panelists
- Asaf Bitton, MD, MPH, Executive Director, Ariadne Labs, NASEM Standing Committee on Primary Care
- Kameron Matthews, MD, JD, FAAFP, Chief Health Officer, Cityblock Health, NASEM Standing Committee on Primary Care
This course was recorded on Dec. 12, 2024. CME credit is only given to participants with an MD who view the event live (not pre-recorded).
Primary Care and Public Health in Boston and MA
This session explores the impact of public health programs and policies on patients and communities in Boston and Massachusetts.
Panelists
- Bisola Ojikutu, MD, MPH, Executive Director, Boston Public Health Commission
- Robbie Goldstein, MD, PhD, Commissioner of the Massachusetts Department of Public Health
This course was recorded on Nov. 1, 2024. CME credit is only given to participants with an MD who view the event live (not pre-recorded).
Grand Rounds: Leadership and Equity
This session focuses on equity's role in primary care access and patient outcomes, and how local leaders are working to prioritize equity despite urgent health care obstacles such as broad systemic disruption and financial challenges.
Panelists
- Nic Nguyen, MD, Beth Israel Lahey Health, Chief Medical Officer & Senior Vice President Primary Care
- Robyn Riseberg, MD, Founder, Boston Community Pediatrics
This course was recorded on Oct. 8, 2024. CME credit is only given to participants with an MD who view the event live (not pre-recorded).
Grand Rounds: Advocacy and Policy at the State Level
Are you wondering how local leaders use policy to best advocate for patient needs? Do you hope to practice people-centered care in communities where healthy lifestyles are feasible and sustainable? Want to understand how local and state governments keep access to medical and behavioral health care, long-term services and supports, and key nutritional and financial benefits readily available?
If so, view this grand rounds session to hear local leaders discuss health care hot topics in the state of Massachusetts such as health inequality and what policy changes could have a significant impact in health care.. We were joined by panelists Kate Walsh, MPH, Secretary of Health and Human Services for Massachusetts, leads one of the strongest health and human services operations in the country, and Katherine Gergen Barnett, MD, Vice Chair of Primary Care Innovation and Transformation in the Department of Family Medicine at Boston Medical Center, a national expert in health care policy and delivery, medical training and community engagement.
This course was recorded on Sept. 30, 2024. CME credit is only given to participants with an MD who view the event live (not pre-recorded).
National and Local Efforts to Strengthen Primary Care
Primary care is the one medical specialty that reliably demonstrates improvement in health outcomes, health equity, and health care costs, yet there has been a noted decline in primary care financing, capacity, performance, equity, and patient access. How can we strengthen primary care to address these documented declines? Join the Harvard Medical School Center for Primary Care in welcoming Barbra Rabson, Dr. Ryan Schwarz, and Dr. Judith Steinberg who will discuss lessons learned in advancing policy and programs.
This course was recorded on May 30, 2024. CME credit is only given to participants with an MD who view the event live (not pre-recorded).
Black Maternal Health: Centering Community to Advance Birth Equity Grand Rounds
This session explores maternal health disparities, and participants will learn how providers can help address these inequities. Dr. Adeola Oni-Orisan is a physician advocate working to combat anti-Black racism in reproductive health care and will discuss current research on community-based models for addressing racial inequities in birth outcomes.
This course was recorded on Apr. 24, 2024. CME credit is only given to participants with an MD who view the event live (not pre-recorded).
Gender Affirming Primary Care
Transgender and gender-diverse patients can face many physical and emotional challenges related to their health. Learn how primary care providers can provide safe and welcoming spaces to help screen, identify, and care for all gender-diverse patients as we hear from Dr. Pamela Adelstein, Dr. Ariel Frey-Vogel, and Dr. Jason Rafferty to discuss gender-affirming Primary care.
This course was recorded on Dec. 5, 2023. CME credit is only given to participants with an MD who view the event live (not pre-recorded).
Primary Care Payment Reform in Massachusetts: A Policy and Advocacy Model for the Country
This session identified barriers in the current payment models for the delivery of comprehensive, equitable health care and will name key components of payment reform that many primary care physicians are advocating for in Massachusetts.
This course was recorded on June 5, 2023. CME credit is only given to participants with an MD who view the event live (not pre-recorded).
Addressing Issues of Access Through Primary Care
Primary care physicians have numerous options for remote monitoring and distance care management but often lack the ability to intervene when the patient has an acute issue or intervention. Our panelists will discuss the importance of access in the context of their primary care practice.
This course was recorded on May 24, 2023. CME credit is only given to participants with an MD who view the event live (not pre-recorded).
Workforce Wellness in Primary Care
During this virtual event panelists discussed the importance of workforce wellness in the context of their primary care practice.
This course was recorded on March 2, 2023. CME credit is only given to participants with an MD who view the event live (not pre-recorded).
Advocacy in Primary Care Grand Rounds
Primary Care—and healthcare at large—desperately needs significant policy reform to best serve our patients and communities. Join us as three panelists discuss the importance of advocacy in the context of their primary care practice, focusing on issues of health equity, social justice, and caring for vulnerable patient populations.
This course was recorded on Jan. 26, 2023. CME credit is only given to participants with an MD who view the event live (not pre-recorded).
LGBTQIA+ Health in Primary Care
In order to provide adequate and equitable care, it's critical for primary care clinicians to understand the unique needs of LGBTQIA+ patients. View this recording as our panelists discuss the challenges facing LGBTQIA+ patients and the scope of practice required to achieve whole-person care for this patient population.
This course was recorded on Dec. 8, 2022. CME credit is only given to participants with an MD who view the event live (not pre-recorded).
Earn CME Credit While Learning About Health Equity
Everyone who attends the live Primary Care Grand Rounds sessions will receive a certificate. Attendees with an MD are eligible to receive CME credit.
Accreditation Statement
In support of improving patient care, Harvard Medical School is jointly accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE), and the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), to provide continuing education for the healthcare team.
Credit Designation Statement
The Harvard Medical School designates this live activity for a maximum of 1.0 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.
Disclosure Statement
In accord with the disclosure policy of the Medical School as well as standards set forth by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education, all individuals in a position to control the content of this activity have been asked to disclose any relationship they have with ineligible companies whose primary business is producing, marketing, selling, re-selling, or distributing healthcare products used by or on patients.
Primary Care Grand Rounds Objectives
Examine the impact of social determinants of health in patient communities
Discuss innovative financing models for primary care practice
Evaluate diverse, non-traditional models for primary care practice, and their respective impact on diverse patient populations
Evaluate new technologies that enable communication and empower patients
Develop strategies for financial sustainability within your practice, including plans for future proofing in the case of vaccine delays, additional surge, and future catastrophic events
Develop resilience strategies to enable your team to thrive over the long term