Michael LeFevre, MD, Future of Family Medicine Professor and vice chair of family and community medicine at the University of Missouri, has been elected to the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies. Election to the IOM is considered one of the highest honors in the fields of health and medicine and recognizes individuals who have demonstrated outstanding professional achievement and commitment to service.
LeFevre, who also serves as chief medical information officer for University of Missouri Health Care, was the only member from Missouri among the 65 new members announced by the IOM on Oct. 17 at its 41st annual meeting. The newly elected members raise IOM's total active membership to 1,688 and the number of foreign associates to 102. With an additional 80 members holding emeritus status, IOM's total membership is 1,870.
"Each of these new members stands out as a professional whose research, knowledge and skills have significantly advanced health and medicine, and their achievements are an inspiration," said IOM President Harvey Fineberg, MD, PhD.
LeFevre is co-vice chair and one of 16 members of the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force. The independent panel of experts in prevention and evidence-based medicine reviews a broad range of clinical preventive health care services — such as screening, counseling, and preventive medications — and develops recommendations for primary care clinicians and health systems.
LeFevre also serves as one of 15 expert panel members for the Joint National Committee on Prevention, Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood Pressure. Sponsored by the National Institutes of Health, the committee is tasked with updating recommendations for the treatment of high blood pressure. He has served on the IOM Committee on Gulf War and Health: Solvents Panel, and the American Academy of Family Physicians' Commission on Clinical Policies and Research.
As director of clinical services for MU's Curtis W. and Ann H. Long Department of Family and Community Medicine, LeFevre oversees eight practices with more than 90,000 annual outpatient visits annually. Since 2003, he has helped lead the electronic health record project for the University of Missouri Health System. He also has played a key role in MU's collaborations with the Cerner Corporation to enhance the use of health information technology, especially to improve care for patients with chronic illnesses.
As an educator, LeFevre teaches students the full breadth of family medicine, including outpatient and inpatient care and obstetrics. He was co-chair of the committee that completely revised the first- and second-year medical school curriculum at MU through the implementation of problem-based learning and early exposure to patient care.
A native of Burlington, Iowa, LeFevre received a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering at MU in 1975. He went on to complete medical school, family and community medicine residency and a Robert Wood Johnson academic family medicine fellowship at MU. Since joining MU's faculty in 1984, he has helped the university's family and community medicine department rank among the top 10 family medicine departments in the country for the past 17 years.
Established in 1970 as the health branch of the National Academy of Sciences, IOM has become recognized as a national resource for independent, scientifically informed analysis and recommendations on health issues. With their election, members make a commitment to volunteer their service on IOM committees, boards and other activities. Projects during the past year include studies on calculating people's vitamin D and calcium needs; improving the process for clearing medical devices for the market; preventing obesity among infants and toddlers; improving American's access to oral health care; preparing for the future of HIV/AIDS in Africa; ensuring the health of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people; and enhancing nurses' role in improving health care.