Rutgers' Martha Lansing named Family Physician of the Year by NJAFP

Martha Lansing, MD, associate professor and vice chair of family medicine and community health at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School and a resident of Hopewell, NJ, has been named the Family Physician of the Year by the New Jersey Academy of Family Physicians (NJAFP). Chosen for her commitment to improving the quality of life for patients and for members of the community, Dr. Lansing was presented the award this month at the NJAFP's annual meeting in Atlantic City. The award qualifies Lansing as a nominee for the national Family Physician of the Year award by the American Academy of Family Physician's.

"Dr. Lansing is a consummate medical educator and clinician, who demonstrates the highest standards in teaching and caring for her patients," said Alfred Tallia, MD, chair of Family Medicine and Community Health at Robert Wood Johnson Medical School. "The Family Physician of the Year award is a competitive and prestigious award conferred on a limited number of physicians. Dr. Lansing is extremely deserving of this honor."

Lansing began her career in private practice in 1985 and a year later began mentoring students from Robert Wood Johnson Medical School. She joined the medical school as a full-time faculty member a decade later and soon became the residency program director, overseeing the education and training of the school's family medicine residents at Capital Health System in Trenton. Residency is a graduate education program, where the participants have earned medical degrees but receive further training in a specialty under the supervision of seasoned faculty physicians for three years in order to obtain specialty certification.

In 2009, Lansing assumed the role of vice chair, providing support and oversite of three residency programs, five fellowship trainees, medical student education, in addition to seeing patients and managing healthcare programs, including a maternity care program and a home visit service. She is director of a combined hospitalist program in family medicine and general internal medicine for Robert Wood Johnson Medical Group, the physician practice of the medical school.

Nationally, Lansing serves on the Accreditation Council of Graduate Medical Education Residency Review Committee for Family Medicine. A certified psychoanalytic psychotherapist, she co-wrote a book with Carol Goodheart, EdD, for the American Psychological Society, entitled Treating People with Chronic Disease, a psychological guide.

According to the New Jersey Academy of Family Physicians, the Family Physician of the Year Award is granted annually to a physician who has practiced in New Jersey for at least 10 consecutive years; who provides his/her community with compassionate, comprehensive and caring medical service; and is a credible role model, emulating the family physician as a healer and human being to the community, and as a professional in the service and art of medicine to colleagues, other health professionals and especially to young physician in training and to medical students.