As a constituent chapter of the American Academy of Family Physicians, your role in preserving your records has significance for the local, regional and national history of the specialty. Your AAFP constituent chapter has a unique history. It is important that you preserve any artifacts, records and other material that your chapter has generated over the years. Your AAFP constituent chapter's records of enduring historical value are an important piece of family medicine's historical "puzzle."
The Center for the History of Family Medicine (CHFM) actively collects, organizes, preserves, and provides access to the records of seven of the leading family medicine organizations as well as the personal and professional papers of family physicians and family medicine educators, family medicine departments, and residency programs.
The History Center is administered by the AAFP Foundation and is located on the fourth floor of the AAFP headquarters building in Leawood, Kansas, just outside of Kansas City, Missouri.The Center provides an ideal environment for the storage and preservation of your materials. It maintains a secure, climate-controlled environment for preservation and provides specialized care by professional staff trained in archival and museum methodology.
CHFM recommends that your records be considered for transfer to us once they are no longer used on a regular basis (usually after 3-5 years). Materials of enduring historical value that should be preserved include administrative, fiscal, historical, and legal records. When in doubt, contact the History Center staff for an appraisal of your records. This can be done in person, over the phone or by email.
Examples of chapter materials appropriate for CHFM include, but are not limited to the following:
Guidelines for the Transfer of Materials from AAFP Constituent Chapters
- Annual reports
- Artifacts (medical equipment and utensils, doctor's bags and lab coats, badges, pins from annual meetings, souvenirs from meetings or special events, etc.)
- Clippings about your chapter and its members
- Constitutions and by-laws
- Histories (about your chapter)
- Incorporation papers
- Lists of chapter annual meetings
- Lists of chapter officers, directors, & staff
- Meeting programs
- Membership directories and handbooks
- Minutes of Board meetings
- Newsletters, journals & other publications
- Pamphlets & brochures
- Photographs of chapter events
- Recordings (audio & visual) of chapter events
- Reports of special projects
- Surveys conducted among your members
Note: In many cases, the original copies of documents should be retained at chapter headquarters. Documents such as Constitutions and By-Laws, Articles of Incorporation, and legal documents regarding your chapter's tax status should be kept on-site. However, it is recommended that chapters place copies of these documents in the History Center to document important historical dates in your chapter's history and to have a back-up copy on file in case of emergency.
Procedures for Transferring Your Department's or Residency's Records:
- Contact the History Center staff first. CHFM staff will evaluate your material to determine if it is appropriate to include in the Center's collections.
- Pack the material neatly in strong boxes with lids. Seal the boxes completely with packing tape. (Folders should be placed in the boxes with labels showing). Never "cram" material in a box. If necessary, use multiple boxes. If the last box is not full, wad up tissue paper or newspaper to fill the remaining space so materials don't fall out of the folders. The best kind of box to use is a 15" x 12" x 10" records storage carton that has handles and a lid. If at all possible, use the same size boxes because they will stack much more efficiently and are easier to mail or ship if necessary.
- Include a listing of folder titles or items in each box and keep one for yourself.
- Provide identification for unmarked items, such as photographs, artifacts or medical instruments. In the case of unidentified photographs, do not mark on the back of the photographs. Instead, write the description of the photograph on a separate piece of paper and place the paper behind the photograph it describes. Alternatively, label images with a Post-It note on the back of each one. For photographs of many people, photocopy the image and write the name of each person directly on the photocopy. (Please note: photographic negatives are just as important, if not more so, than the photographs because the best possible copies can be made from the original negative. If they are available, please send negatives to us along with the photographs.)
- If you are in the metro Kansas City area, you can drop off your donation at the Center at AAFP Headquarters, located at 11400 Tomahawk Creek Parkway in Leawood, Kansas. For security purposes, please do not make deliveries without telling the History Center staff that you are coming.
- If material is coming from outside the metro Kansas City area, ship your donation using a reliable carrier. If some material is fragile, have these items professionally packaged and request tracking and/or insurance. If you have any questions, please contact the History Center.
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Donations
Guidelines for the Donation of Personal & Professional Papers
Guidelines for the Transfer of Materials from AAFP Constituent Chapters
Guidelines for the Transfer of Materials from Family Medicine Organizations
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