AMA Doctors Back to School program inspires new generation of physicians.

Doctors Back to School event planned for Chicago
The AMA-MAC invites all physicians to participate in a Doctors Back to School (DBTS) visit from 8:30 to 10 a.m., May 16 at the Ted Lenart Regional Gifted Center in Chicago. Send an e-mail  if you would like to take part in this DBTS visit or would like more information on setting up a visit in your community.

If you are like many physicians, you are practicing medicine today because you knew someone who inspired you to follow that path.

The AMA Minority Affairs Consortium (MAC) is calling on all minority physicians to fill a similar role for children in their communities by taking part in Doctors Back to School (DBTS).

Doctors Back to School is a program that aims to raise awareness of the need for more minority physicians and to encourage children from underrepresented minority groups to look at medicine as a career option. Through Doctors Back to School, physicians and medical students across the country visit schools and community organizations to help young minority children realize they, too, can follow the same path.

The program continues year round and was orginally launched in March 2002. As of 2007, the AMA is partnering with the Commission to End Healthcare Disparities to incresase the number of physicians and schools taking part in the Doctors Back to School program.  Participating physicians visit schools in their communities as real-life role modes, sharing their experiences in preparing for medical school and helping young minority children realize they can follow the same path. The latest Doctors Back to School kit is available online. Physicians are encouraged to continue making visits to schools and other community programs whenever they can during the year.

Recent Doctors Back to School Activities and Press Releases:

DBTS event on Nov. 8, 2007
A second visit to the Mililani Middle School located in Mililani, Hawaii, just outside of Honolulu took place on Nov. 8, 2007.  This visit was requested by the school subsequent to a DBTS visit in August 2007.  The format was an hour long presentation that was followed by a question and answer period.

DBTS event on Oct, 23, 2007
Physicians and AMA staff visited the John J. Pershing West Magnet School, a Chicago public school that was created through the Renasissance 2010 initiative.  The format for this visit entailed individual classroom visits for each group.  Each team assigned to the classroom typically consisted of one or two physicians and one AMA staff member.  Classroom activities included a combination of lectures, question-and-answer sessions, medical spelling bee, trivia quesitons, and displaying props such as x-rays.

DBTS event on Aug. 7, 2007
Physicians visited the Mililani Middle School located in Mililani, Hawaii, just outside of Honolulu.  The school is open year round with sixth through eighth grade students.  The format was two 45-minute presentations that were followed by a question-and-answer session and trivia questions.  Two hundred students participated in the event.

DBTS event on April 23, 2007 in Baltimore, Maryland (PDF, 27KB requires Adobe® Reader®)

DBTS event on April 23, 2007 in Washington, DC (PDF, 27KB)

DBTS inspire Future Doctors of America Club

American Medical News, October 3, 2005: "Doctor training starts here in 7th grade" (Viewing article requires AMA membership or American Medical News subscription)

August 2005: AMA releases newly designed Doctors Back to School kits

Questions Children Ask

Lists questions that were asked of doctors who presented Doctors Back To School programs.

Doctors Back to School Kit

Materials and ordering information for the Doctors Back to School kit.

Frequently Asked Questions about the AMA Doctors Back to School Program

Answers to questions about Doctors Back to School