My Calendar

First semester resident Jairo Andrés Acosta begins with the cycle of Journal Clubs and great sessions, on March 21 and 22. These events are free admission, so all medical students and health professionals can attend to share the knowledge imparted.

Endometriosis affects approximately 10% of women of reproductive age. It is a chronic disease that is produced by the growth of endometrial tissue in structures other than the endometrium, either in close proximity or in distant sites such as the lungs. This disease produces a quite varied symptomatology, but pain is one of the causes that generates more consultation in affected patients.

On many occasions what these women feel is not validated and is normalized as a symptom associated with the menstrual cycle, or much worse conditioned to its chronicity and that women have to simply resign themselves and put up with this symptomatology. In her great session held on April 18, the second semester resident Tanya Duran, put herself in the shoes of one of her patients with endometriosis, in a very assertive way she showed all the dimensions affected in her patient. In this academic activity, Dr. Duran presented this pathology from the psychological, emotional, sociocultural, mental and spiritual perspective of the affected patient. This interpretation moved emotions and feelings in the whole audience and allowed an understanding of all the aspects involved in this condition. This innovative didactic technique allowed a comprehensive view of the subject to be discussed and allowed a parallel between the information in the medical literature and the reality of the patients.

The definition of the family has been transformed, and a diverse range of families has been created, where kinship and consanguinity are no longer the fundamental aspects of its conformation. Historically, the family did not include the nuclear family we know today and there is controversy as to whether this type of family is a social, religious or legal format.

The family is currently established as an open social group, which interacts with its environment and whose union can be by affinity, blood or legal ties. The family has great importance in the sexual education of its members and it has been shown that appropriate sexual education of children is a factor that delays the onset of sexual relations and helps in the appropriate use of contraceptive methods. It is recommended that parents educate about sexuality, participate in comprehensive sexual education processes, choose the moments to educate, teach children to call each organ by its name, validate the feelings and emotions of their children and also know their friends and what their children see on social networks.

These aspects were the subject of reflection and a comparison was made with law and medicine, establishing the role of the family physician in educational aspects. This activity, the third sexuality narrative, was held on April 15, 2024 and was satisfactorily evaluated by the attendees.

Being faithful to the fifth principle of family medicine "The family physician considers himself part of the community network of support and health care." Residents and teachers of the Family Medicine Specialization program were part of the event organized by the Judicial Branch of Neiva, called Health Week. Here, activities aimed at knowledge and establishment of healthy lifestyle habits were carried out. Methods were taught to incorporate healthy eating habits and easy exercises were taught to perform in daily life and thus contribute to the reduction of sedentary lifestyles. On April 8 and 9, 2024, the specialization was accompanied by undergraduate students and in a joint effort health education was brought to the workplace of these important members of the community of Neiva.

Balint with the first semester residents of the second cohort of the Specialization in Family Medicine program of UNINAVARRA. This space took place in a cafeteria near the institution's headquarters and was held on April 1st, 2024. The residents had the opportunity to have a dialogue about the patient-physician relationship and focused on the emotional aspects of patients. They discussed their difficulties with patients who are sad or angry and how these emotions influence the resident's nonverbal language and the countertransference that these emotions generate. She also discussed those patients with couple or family conflicts that are expressed during the consultation. Rapport, empathy, compassion and emotion validation guidelines were established. The ways of discovering the physician's limitations in the face of the patient's statements or preferences were also explained. Paths were established to self-evaluate and heal the physician's own aspects that become barriers at the moment of establishing a doctor-patient relationship.

Debriefing is an activity that allows a conscious and intentional reflection of the student's performance after a simulated practice. The student has the opportunity to observe himself in his medical performance and to analyze his communication habits, soft and specific competencies, as well as the quality of his care. The first semester Family Medicine residents performed debriefing after their practice with a simulated patient at HUSAC, which allowed them to see and hear themselves in their medical performance, listen to the patients' perception of them, perform a self-evaluation, allow a co-evaluation by their peers and be attentive to the teachers' suggestions in their heteroevaluation. All these evaluations are free of judgments or numerical weighting that qualifies them. The simulated practice performed on March 20, 2024 was a formative space of great importance for the development of some competencies necessary for family medicine residents.

The second Narrative of Sexuality, which focused on desire, love and sex from all dimensions of being, was successfully held on March 11. It also had its legal component that produced debates among the attendees and reflections on human sexuality from an integral point of view. Attendees expressed their satisfaction with the event and insisted that this type of activities should continue to be carried out and be extended to the community in general.

In an unprecedented event on March 12, 2024, the twelve Family Medicine residents of UNINAVARRA held a meeting with the Family Medicine specialists of the region. In this meeting, clinical issues were discussed and also, proposals were led to initiate the Southern Chapter of Family Medicine, making a schedule, with the active participation of residents. Proposals for the realization of the First South Colombian Congress of Family Medicine were also heard.

The second semester residents, Yelitza Tole and Maria Araque, presented the clinical case "Dyslipidemias, a look from family medicine", at the Congress of Family Medicine, from the versatility to the practice of Family Medicine. This clinical case was of a real patient treated in the city of Neiva at the Carmen Emilia Ospina E.S.E., where the intervention of the specialty allowed positive changes in the physical, psychosocial and family environment of the patient. Congratulations to the residents for their extraordinary participation!

Family Medicine Residents from UNINAVARRA, accompanied by professors Dr. Martha Niebles and Dr. Carlos Reyes, participated on March 7,8 and 9 in the Family Medicine Congress organized by the Javeriana University, held in the Alfonso Quintana Cardenas auditorium, in the city of Bogota. The experience allowed our group of residents and professors to share experiences with colleagues from different universities in the country, as well as to participate in the different academic and social events of this important congress. We appreciate the invitation of the Universidad Javeriana to this activity that promotes the growth of our specialty at national level.

On Friday, March 01, 2024, Clínica Medilaser offered a welcome event to the group of second semester residents of Family Medicine. The event was attended by the directors of Clínica Medilaser, Mrs. Myriam Parra, founding partner and the coordinator of the specialization in Family Medicine. The residents received the gown that identifies them as part of the medical team of the clinic and began their training process in the specialties of general surgery, internal medicine, pediatrics, gynecology and obstetrics.

On February 15, 2024, the Family Medicine specialization held its fourth Balint group and the first one with the participation of the 12 residents. This activity was used not only to review aspects of the patient-physician relationship, but also to address issues of well-being of each of the residents. Considering that family physicians must resolve their internal issues so that these do not become an obstacle for a holistic and integral care of their patients. There was also the opportunity to celebrate birthdays, which are substantial aspects of the person to feel loved and accompanied by their peers. As well as relaxation and meditation activities to balance the different dimensions of each of the people who are part of this specialization.

One of the attendees to the event highlighted that ".... They take the legal and medical part and unify it simply to explain how the topic of sexuality is evolving, that's what I liked the most".

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The specialization in Family Medicine in collaborative work with the Faculty of Humanities and the office of inclusion created and carried out on February 12 the first of four narratives of sexuality. This event was called: "The ABC of sex, gender and sexual orientation. The event was attended by Family Medicine residents and faculty, undergraduate medical students and students from the Law program. The session was led by Dr. Isidro Torres Castro from the Family Medicine specialization, Dr. Luis Carlos Quintero Malo from the Faculty of Health Sciences and Dr. Martha Cecilia Abella and Katherine Torres from the Faculty of Humanities. It was an academic event where both speakers and participants expressed their opinions and knowledge on the subject.

The following Narratives will be the days:

March 11, 2024 with the theme "Expressions of sexuality, desire, sex and love".

April 15, 2024 with the theme "Family and sexuality".

May 13, 2024 with the theme "The Pendulum of Sexuality".

The entire academic community and the community in general are invited to participate in this event, which is free of charge.

Dr. Shirley Gallo, Internist and Diabetologist, participated as a special guest in the great session "Diabetes Mellitus type 2", conducted by Resident Daniel Almario. Her collaboration allowed both residents and undergraduate students to strengthen the processes of insulin application and monitoring of patients with diabetes mellitus.

Dr. Gallo conducted a practical workshop and taught the participants about the latest advances in glucose self-monitoring and the technology available in our country in this regard.

At 07:00 a.m. on January 26, 2024, at the Carmen Emilia Ospina E.S.E., Canaima headquarters, the first patients who participated in the social project of the Family Medicine specialization, "Pasos Seguros, Vida Plena" (Safe Steps, Full Life), were received. An innovative and fundamental initiative, which prioritizes the comprehensive care of patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. The main objective of this activity is to evaluate the feet of patients, to detect early symptoms and signs of neuropathy, a serious complication of uncontrolled diabetes mellitus.

At the same time, we embarked on a health education mission, sharing crucial knowledge about preventive foot care and diabetes in general. In this event we had the participation of the 12 Family Medicine residents, the interns who are doing their rotation in this area and of course 4 Family Medicine specialist teachers. We were pleased to have the cooperation of 81 patients diagnosed with diabetes mellitus to whom we performed anthropometric measurements, evaluation of lower limbs (deep and superficial sensitivity: tuning fork and monofilament), advice on the results of paraclinical tests and assertive education on type 2 diabetes mellitus. The activity concluded at 12:00 m. with full satisfaction of the participants and an invitation was extended to more patients to continue with this evaluative and educational process.

The first year residents of the Family Medicine Specialization carry out academic activities, journal clubs and large sessions with free admission for students and professionals in the health area. These events are of great interest and formative contribution, so all people are invited according to the schedules and publicity presented by the residents.

Within the framework of the great session, "Cognitive behavioral therapy: Therapeutic approach to facilitate weight loss and weight maintenance in overweight and obese patients", conducted by the resident I of Family Medicine, Maria Mercedes Araque, had the extraordinary participation of Maria Fernanda Colla. This specialist from her country of origin, Argentina, in addition to advising the resident, made it possible to listen to a wonderful dissertation on cognitive behavioral therapy that allows a transdisciplinary integration and a comprehensive and holistic approach to the subject developed by Dr. Araque.

At 07:00 am, on January 15, 2024, the welcome and induction ceremony was held for the six residents who began their first semester of the Family Medicine specialization at the University Foundation Navarra UNINAVARRA. This event was attended by the deanship of the Faculty of Health, the coordination of the program, professors, residents of the first court of the specialization, as well as the administrative staff of the institution. All of them were in charge of giving a warm welcome to the new residents and an induction with the basic aspects of both the institution and the program. The new residents expressed to be full of expectations about the program and with the expected fears when approaching this new challenge for their professional life.

On January 12, 2024, the residents of the Specialization in Family Medicine performed their first practice at HUSAC, new headquarters, having as a scenario simulated consultation and debriefing. With the collaboration of simulated patients, the residents participated in simulation practices, where all aspects of the medical act were observed, including communication, doctor-patient relationship, compilation of clinical data, competencies to perform problem-oriented physical examination and finally diagnostic impression and patient management. This activity was recorded for each resident and afterwards each one had the opportunity to observe and perform self-evaluation, followed by a co-evaluation by their peers and finally the attending teachers present and analyze the different aspects of the medical act performed. The activity concludes successfully and the residents are very satisfied after this practice that contributes to the improvement of their professional activity.

Dr. Isidro Torres Castro, coordinator of the Family Medicine program of the University Foundation Navarra-UNINAVARRA and the first year resident Daniel Almario participated with speakers at the XII National Congress of Family Medicine and IV International Congress of Family Medicine of the Universidad del Bosque, international meeting of residents. This event was held on October 26, 27, 7 and 28, 2023 at the headquarters of the Universidad del Bosque in the city of Bogota. 

The Family Medicine Specialization of the University Foundation of Navarra - UNINAVARRA counted with the presence of an international speaker, Dr. Dan Fenyvesi; professor at the University of Arizona (United States), researcher, registered dietitian and Master in Nutrition, with experience in public health as a specialist in chronic diseases. He conducted a series of studies on food habits and eating processes according to the food customs of Mesoamerica. The workshop was held on July 27 and 28, 2023, a space where the results of this research process were socialized, an activity that was attended by 240 students beneficiaries of this important training in nutrition.

The meeting recalled that health is the result of the food consumed and that diet and food is reflected in how we look, how we feel and how much energy we have for our daily activities; taking into account that obesity is an epidemic and that this epidemic is generating not only cardiovascular risk diseases but cancers and other diseases, therefore, at this time this training process is of utmost importance for the entire community Navarrista.

On December 5, 2023, the teachers and residents of the family medicine program participated as attendees in the event called Master Class, which was conducted by international speakers from the University of La Sapienza-Italy. Daniela Polose and Alessandro Mazzetta.

"Gastrointestinal Psychosomatic disorders in childhood and adolescence" .

"The approach in the relationship with the patient in developmental age and parental support , from childhood to adolescence, according to recent scientific discoveries on human mind/brain reactions at birth.

"Somatic complaints in adolescence, high stress sensitivity and aberrant salience: a north star for the early detection ,prevention and treatment of states at risk for developing psychosis".

These topics were described in a masterly manner in English, generating interest and questioning on the part of both the teaching team and the attending residents, as well as new approaches for the development of research designs and preventive work.

On December 12, 2023, family medicine teachers Martha Niebles, María del Pilar Leal, Carlos Reyes and Isidro Torres participated in the Panel of Experts in Family Medicine, organized by the Universidad Surcolombiana. In this event they presented the current characteristics of the specialization in Colombia and worldwide and shared experiences as specialists with students and interns of the Universidad Surcolombiana and the Fundación Universitaria Navarra-UNINAVARRA. 

Presentation of the program

Family Medicine, more than an area of medical knowledge, is an integrating axis of medical practice, which provides holistic and humanized medical care to the person; performing particular processes of characterization, validation of information, management, education and proposal of intervention strategies to focus them on primary health care from a systemic, generalist, differential and inclusive approach that seeks the care of the individual, his family and community.

This specialization focuses its work on the person; involving the globality and complexity of the being, taking into account both the physical and psychosocial component of the individual and the determinants that modify and maintain their health. For family medicine, health is more than a state of "Well-being", it is the objective and subjective amalgam of factors that, from each of the individual and family life cycles, tend to the harmonious development and the experience of the individual immersed in a social sphere. For this reason, an ethnographic approach is involved where social, family and community relationships and the relationship with the disease itself are pillars of the care process. The ethnographic vision of Family Medicine allows the differential approach of the individual, the family and its cultural group, allowing the production of cost-effective strategies aimed at maintaining the health of specific groups according to their characteristics and needs.

The knowledge and work of the Family Medicine specialist is transversal to the different medical specialties, not as a professional hoarder of knowledge, but as an integrating specialist, mediator and coordinator of medical care, ensuring its resolvability and timeliness. His approach moves away from the separatist perspective and involves the generalization of medical knowledge to provide comprehensive care to individuals, families and communities.

The specialization in Family Medicine is the result of a need for holistic care based on the individual and not on the disease. Due to its principles and focus on prevention, it is a pioneer and fundamental support in integral processes of Primary Health Care and maintenance of the health of individuals, families and communities.