STFM Member Melly Goodell, MD, is the chair of the Department of Family Medicine at MedStar Franklin Square Medical Center in Baltimore, Maryland and associate professor of Clinical Family Medicine at Georgetown University. Dr Goodell has been an active member of STFM for 21 years.

See One. Do One. Teach One.

by Melly Goodell, MD

My STFM story began when I was a junior faculty at the Medical College of Wisconsin. In a traditional “see one, do one, teach one” fashion, Deb Simpson, who led our faculty development programs, added my name to a submission, took me under her wing, and asked me to join her for a presentation at the STFM Conference on Medical Student Education.

From there, Deb urged me to begin writing my own submissions and partner with colleagues on projects; she also provided critical feedback on my submissions. Before long, I was mentoring other faculty and residents on their submissions in a similar fashion.

The opportunity to present my work at meetings helped build my confidence about the value of that work, allowed me to grow my educator’s portfolio for advancement, and more importantly, helped me develop a rich network of colleagues and friends from across the country.

STFM meetings became a favorite part of the year, professionally and personally. Gradually, leadership development through STFM became a prominent part of my STFM activity. I served on the Graduate Medical Education Committee for 4 years and then served as Member-at-Large on the Board of Directors for 3 years. I then had the honor of serving as STFM President. Ten years of STFM leadership contributed to the development of countless skills applied within STFM, as well as within home departmental leadership roles. There is no question that my STFM involvement helped to further my career.

Along with leadership skills, my involvement with STFM has provided professional networks, personal friendships, scholarly activity venues, mentorship opportunities, and all-around fun. I learned more and more about STFM Foundation programs and was excited to be able to support and contribute to the Foundation. I am proud to be a Foundation donor and to be able to directly support students, residents, and faculty through initiatives such as the Faculty for Tomorrow Resident Scholarship, the  New Faculty Scholars Program, and Underrepresented in Medicine activities.

Paying it Forward

Transforming the future of family medicine would not be possible without the generosity of people like Melly Goodell, as well as countless STFM members and supporters. Through both member and departmental donations, the STFM Foundation is able to support STFM's priority to develop the pipeline for academic family medicine. 

To transform the future of academic family medicine by donating to the STFM Foundation, contact Mindy Householder at 800.274.7928 or mhouseholder@stfm.org.