In this informative session, the speaker will help clinicians build better understandings with their patients and discuss how to make the office a more welcoming environment. Participants will walk away with culturally-informed and -sensitive approaches to counseling and an enhanced comprehension of the unique mental health problems faced by the LGBTQ population.

Sjögren's syndrome is more than just dry eyes and dry mouth; it is a complex, systemic autoimmune disease that affects the entire body. Primary care clinicians are in a unique position to help patients make sense of the complex array of symptoms to reach a diagnosis, make a referral to a rheumatologist when possible, or if needed, fully treat the disease. As the number of rheumatologists in the U.S. declines, it is essential that primary care clinicians understand how to diagnose and manage Sjögren’s syndrome in order to help patients live fully and comfortably with their disease.

This talk will address common questions asked about patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD). What is a good blood pressure target for my patient? How should I use ACE-inhibitors and angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs) in CKD? Or evaluate for secondary hypertension? What about new treatments like sodium bicarbonate and SGLT2 inhibitors? As well as answering these questions, the faculty will discuss the goals of the executive order from the Department of Health and Human Services signed in July 2019: reducing the risk of kidney failure, improving access and quality of person-centered treatment options, and increasing access to transplants.

For four decades, leading physicians have called patients the most under-used resource in healthcare, a sentiment amplified by statements like "Nothing about me without me." But slogans alone don’t cause change, and the time has come to teach clinicians (and patients/caregivers) to evolve healthcare in the internet age and to seek the evidence, rationale, and theoretical basis for these practices. While many patients are not yet "e-patients" (empowered and engaged), new care models are emerging and real. When new methods are understood and developed, the workload can be rebalanced, and the results can be more fulfilling for all. This unconventional keynote will be shared, fittingly, by the best-known exemplars of this new model: stage IV cancer survivor "e-Patient Dave" deBronkart and his physician, Dr. Danny Sands. They are two of the co-founders of the Society for Participatory Medicine and co-authors of "Let Patients Help: A Patient Engagement Handbook." Participants will learn about the transformative and potentially disruptive movement of participatory medicine, and they will leave informed -- even empowered -- to take effective new actions on behalf of their patients.

Memory loss is a common complaint across the age spectrum. This presentation will give a practical and cost-effective approach to assessing memory loss in the primary care setting.

Knee pain is one of the most common musculoskeletal complaints in primary care. This presentation will cover a systematic evidence-based approach to the knee exam. Through live demonstrations and patient cases, you will learn differences between a knee exam focused on acute versus overuse injuries and develop more awareness of pediatric and geriatric considerations.

The purpose of this talk is to provide a broad overview of cutaneous malignancies and emphasize the most common types: basal cell carcinomas, squamous cell carcinomas, and malignant melanomas. The speaker will focus on effective screening questions and physical exam clues that guide clinical decision-making and distinguish cases that need immediate referral from those that can be managed in the primary care setting. A portion of the talk will focus on both surgical and non-surgical options for management of cutaneous malignancies. The final segment of the talk will focus on helpful cutaneous clues for diagnosis of internal malignancies.

This engaging session will review risk factors for falls and the approach to treating a patient who has fallen or is at high risk of falling. Participants will learn about guidelines and validated tools for gait and fall risk assessment and review evidence-based interventions that have been shown to prevent falls in community-dwelling older adults.

Patients interested in contraceptives can now select from a wide array of effective methods. This lecture will provide an overview of commonly-prescribed reversible contraceptive methods and current issues pertaining to their use.

This case-based talk will review common challenges and situations that both neurologists and primary care clinicians face in caring for patients with movement disorders. Movement disorders can be divided into hypokinetic (reduced and slowed movements) and hyperkinetic (excessive and quick movements), and the faculty will provide a framework to recognize them. Participants will learn about movement disorder assessment, treatment challenges, and explore new options in both essential tremor and in Parkinson’s disease. Lastly, the faculty will contextualize Parkinson’s disease, along with Lewy Body Dementia, in the spectrum of neurodegenerative conditions.

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) has been associated with multiple physical symptoms, chronic medical conditions, and excess healthcare utilization. Despite its prevalence, rates of timely and accurate recognition are alarmingly low, and misdiagnosis is common. In primary care, undiagnosed and unmanaged PTSD has a substantial deleterious impact on physical health status. This presentation will discuss: (1) common physical manifestations of PTSD, particularly how PTSD might present for various demographic subgroups and with less obvious signs; (2) evidence demonstrating how accurate identification of PTSD and implementing protocols for trauma-informed care lead to improved patient engagement and wellbeing; and (3) suggestions for providing evidence supported trauma-informed primary care, including pharmacotherapy, brief psychoeducational interventions, and referrals that maximize patient engagement.

Asthma in children is all too often not well controlled. It remains one of the most common chronic illnesses you will manage in your office and one of the most frequent reasons why children are admitted to the hospital. I will discuss recent updates on managing asthma exacerbations with inhaled and oral steroids including the risks and benefits of dexamethasone. In addition, I will review the safety of using long-acting beta agonists in combination with inhaled steroids in children. I will also provide recommendations on when to consider treatment with omalizumab, one of the new asthma biological therapies, which has been approved for children as young as six years of age.