ADA names Eric Johnson as 2017 Primary Care Advisory Group Vice Chair

GRAND FORKS, N.D.— The American Diabetes Association has named Associate Professor Eric L. Johnson, MD, in the Department of Family and Community Medicine at the University of North Dakota School of Medicine and Health Sciences, as the 2017 Primary Care Advisory Group vice chair. In this role, Johnson will lead the association\u27s efforts to develop effective strategies to engage primary care providers, he will transition to chair in 2018. There are more than 29 million Americans who have diabetes and an additional 86 million American adults with prediabetes. Primary care providers treat 90 percent of patients with diabetes, these healthcare professionals are a key priority to the association. Johnson\u27s work with the Primary Care Advisory Group has accelerated outreach to primary care providers through several initiatives, including the national Diabetes Is Primary program at the association\u27s scientific sessions. This one-day program highlights recommendations that are essential for primary care providers. The program distributed more than 10,000 continuing education certificates through the online version of the meeting. In addition, Johnson and colleagues develop the association\u27s abridged version of the Standards of Medical Care in Diabetes. This important document packages the association\u27s annual guidelines into a manageable article for busy primary care providers. Johnson has been instrumental on several additional articles to professional journals that feature key guidelines from the Standards. Johnson will help to oversee these and other key initiatives in 2017, including the expansion of Diabetes Is Primary to other markets. Johnson is the director of the SMHS’s Interprofessional Education Program, the medical director for the SMHS’s Physician Assistant Program, and assistant medical director for the Altru Diabetes Center. He also is the president of the American Diabetes Association North Dakota Affiliate and the president of Tobacco Free North Dakota. ### Denis F. MacLeod Assistant Director, Office of Alumni and Community Relations University of North Dakota School of Medicine and Health Sciences 501 N Columbia Road, Stop 9037 | Room 1106 | Grand Forks, ND 58202-9037 701.777.2733 direct | 218.779.3107 cell denis.macleod@med.UND.edu www.med.UND.ed