American Association for Primary Care Endoscopy (AAPCE)

The American Association for Primary Care Endoscopy (AAPCE) is a non-profit organization formed in 2006. Our mission is to provide a forum that fosters a collegial relationship among dedicated, competent primary care endoscopists as they seek to improve their individual expertise and raise, with integrity, the general level of primary care physician endoscopy practice.

The AAPCE was founded in 2006 for the purpose of making gastrointestinal endoscopy more accessible to most Americans as well as for improving the overall health of their patients. To this end we strive to provide support and ongoing training for their members as well as encourage endoscopy training in primary care residencies.

Their members' listserve has been an invaluable platform for discussing intriguing and unusual cases with other members.

Their founding president, Dr Bill Coleman, is a family physician who performed gastrointestinal endoscopy for over 30 years and was a past president of the American Academy of Family Physicians.

The AAPCE has the potential to be a vital part of improving health care in our country and we welcome the involvement of primary care physicians who perform or wish to perform gastrointestinal endoscopy.

The goals of the American Association for Primary Care Endoscopy are as follows:
• To develop and maintain a national society of primary care endoscopy physicians who share a common philosophy, body of knowledge, and expertise related to endoscopy and its practice.
• To provide multi-disciplinary educational opportunities for primary care endoscopy physicians using meetings, videos, printed materials, and other educational tools.
• To encourage and support research in the area of primary care endoscopy and perform regular reviews of the knowledge base in gastrointestinal endoscopy using evidence-based methods.
• To provide a venue for idea and information sharing among colleagues about the practical aspects of gastrointestinal endoscopy and primary care physician delivery of endoscopy services.
• To develop, and lead in formulating, position statements, guidelines, and educational material about primary care endoscopy topics for both professional and lay use.
• To provide a primary care perspective in the field of gastrointestinal endoscopy and assist members in addressing issues that affect their ability to offer high quality care to the public.
Members will be added to the list serve discussion group upon acceptance into the association.