Griffin Cupstid, MD

I'm looking forward to the Congress of Delegates meeting in Anaheim. It's hard to believe it is only 1 week away. Meanwhile, I'm spending the weekend studying the issues with my campaign steering committee. 

I am Griffin Cupstid, and I am pleased to announce my candidacy for the AAFP Board of Directors. Our profession and its institutions stand at a critical juncture. We are witnessing an unprecedented assault on our nation’s health care system. Not only do these attacks challenge the stability of the health care system, they strike at the very foundations of a free and open society. Organizations like the AAFP are essential in upholding the principles that enable our diverse health care system to equitably serve the public good with compassion and inclusivity. As physicians, we are responsible for ensuring these institutions remain beacons of integrity amid a sea of pseudoscience and duplicity. If elected to the Board, I will be a strong voice for evidenced-based policymaking. I will advocate for initiatives that bolster our Academy's dedication to scientific rigor, empower physicians to address misinformation effectively, and promote policies that ensure our Academy remains resilient...

A recent editorial in The Journal of Graduate Medical Education reminded me of a classic Mark Twain quote. When confronted by reporters about rumors of his untimely demise, Twain, both irritated and amused, famously remarked, “The report of my death has been greatly exaggerated.” In “A Eulogy for the Primary Care Physician,” Forrest Bohler and David Blumenthal offer a tongue-in-cheek requiem for primary care medicine. In this satirical piece, the authors enumerate the systemic forces that have led to our specialty’s purported demise. While their “eulogy” contains elements of truth, it is greatly exaggerated, and more importantly, we’re not dead yet! Bohler and Blumenthal begin by lauding the noble idea that everyone deserves a trusted primary care physician to navigate the complexities of our healthcare system. They then explain the various threats to primary care, including physician shortages in rural and underserved areas, as well as the fee-for-service system's preference f...

The South Carolina Academy of Family Physicians' Summer Breakaway and Annual Assembly was held at the Sonesta Resort on Hilton Head Island, SC, from June 5 to 8, 2025. 

Remarks on being named South Carolina Family Physician of the Year. I am humbled and incredibly grateful for this honor. Let me start by thanking the Board of Directors of the South Carolina Academy of Family Physicians and our Executive Vice President, Paquita Turner, for allowing me to serve in this organization for the past three decades. I also want to recognize my wife, Betty, for her support, encouragement, and patience for nearly 42 years. This honor means the world to me — but, honestly, I can’t get over a nagging feeling. If you have impostor syndrome, you know what I’m talking about. It’s the feeling that maybe you don’t deserve it. Imposter syndrome is very common in our profession. A recent study said forty percent of physicians have this affliction. Betty, however, has a different name for this phenomenon. She calls us Backstage People. For many years, Betty and I volunteered with our local professional ballet company (no, we didn’t dance!). For a while, she was president...