Welcome, Dr Lawrence Kaplan

It is with great pleasure that we welcome Dr Kaplan to our Editorial Board. His commitment to teaching primary care medicine makes him well qualified to serve as one of our key advisors.

Dr Kaplan is assistant dean for clinical education, professor of medicine, and section chief, general internal medicine, at Temple University School of Medicine in Philadelphia, where he recently received the Christian F. and Mary R. Lindback Foundation Award for Distinguished Teaching and the Russell and Pearl Moses Memorial Endowed Award for Outstanding Teaching. Throughout his teaching career, he has won numerous awards given by medical students and residents.

After graduating from Temple University School of Medicine, Dr Kaplan served his internship and residency at the Medical College of Pennsylvania Hospital in Philadelphia. He then joined the faculty of Robert Wood Johnson Medical School (RWJMS) of the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, and completed a faculty development program in general internal medicine at Bayview Medical Center/Johns Hopkins Medical School; he was director of the third- and fourth-year internal medicine clerkships at RWJMS. In 2002, he became associate professor at Temple University and was subsequently promoted to professor of medicine.

A fellow of the American College of Physicians and a member of the Society of General Internal Medicine, Dr Kaplan has served on numerous professional committees, including the ad hoc Committee on Ambulatory and Comprehensive Internal Medicine of the American Board of Internal Medicine. He has written more than 35 articles, book chapters, abstracts, and reviews, and he has been invited to give numerous presentations and workshops, many of which reflect his interest in medical problems in pregnancy, disease prevention, and medical education.

Dr Kaplan is an active researcher; among his educational and research interests are ambulatory medical education, clinical skills training, and physician-patient communication. Current projects include:
•Acoustic modeling and simulation in teaching cardiac auscultation to third-year medical students.
•Teaching reflective skills to medical sub-interns.
•Nursing and medical student collaborative training using a high-tech patient simulation center.

In the past year, Dr Kaplan has readily shared his expertise with us: he has reviewed manuscripts and offered insights into how Consultant can best serve the needs of primary care providers. We are delighted that he has accepted our invitation to join the other distinguished members of our Editorial Board (whose names appear on page 77). He will continue to play a key role in making sure we bring you concise, practical, and challenging editorial that can help you in your daily practice.

-- Julie Bowen
Editorial Director