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Dr. Jim King, at right, a family practice physician from Selmer, Tennessee, thanks a member of the U.S. Navy's Blue Angels Flight Squadron. King was treated to a VIP ride with the Blue Angels.

Who would have thought that being a family practice physician from Selmer, Tenn., would take you to Spearfish, S. D., or Bangor, Maine, and even land you a celebrity flight with the famous U.S. Navy's Blue Angels Flight Squadron? For Jim King, MD, it did just that and much more.

King grew up with his two brothers and sister in Henderson, Tenn., where his father was a general practitioner and his mother was a nurse. Medicine would seem the natural choice for all four children as they grew up with a mother and father who were both healthcare professionals. Only King and his sister, who has her Doctor of Nursing Practice and works as a psychiatric nurse, chose it as their profession.

"Dad never put any pressure on us to go into medicine," said King, who was the oldest of the three boys. "As a freshman in high school, we had to complete a personality profile. The last question was 'what will you do when you complete your education?' I wrote medical doctor and never looked back."

King stayed in the West Tennessee area after high school, graduating from the University of Tennessee at Martin (UTM). He received his medical degree from the University of Tennessee College of Medicine in Memphis. He completed his residency training in family practice at the UT Family Medicine residency program in Jackson. "Growing up in a family doctor's home, I had a good idea of what I would be getting into as a family medicine physician when I started medical school," said King.

After his residency was complete, King and his wife Sandra, a nurse, moved to Selmer, where they raised their three children. They also became involved in the First Baptist Church in Selmer, where King is a deacon. Although their children are now grown, they all still live in the West Tennessee area. Oldest son Jon is married and is a Durable Medical Equipment sales representative. Daughter Emily is a nurse who works in the intensive care unit and emergency room at McNairy Regional Medical Center in Selmer. The youngest son, Ben, is in his junior year at UTM majoring in criminal justice.

Right out of residency, King started practicing with his father and Michael Smelser, MD, in 1985. "Dad and I practiced together for nearly ten years," said King, who is a board certified family physician. "I learned a great deal from him and think that with the new technology and training I brought into the practice, I helped change dad's practice some as well."

Ten years ago, the practice became Prime Care Medical Center. Today, the staff includes seven physicians with offices in Henderson, Selmer, and Adamsville. "I love never knowing what awaits me on the other side of the exam room door," said King. "I find family medicine to be very enjoyable and rewarding. You have the responsibility of taking care of the whole person and many times the entire family. It is as though you become part of the family."

While in residency training, King made the decision to become active in organized medicine. From West Tennessee Consolidated Medical Assembly, a professional organization for physicians in West Tennessee outside Shelby County, to the Tennessee Medical Association (TMA) to the Tennessee Academy of Family Physicians (TAFP), he has worked his way up through the ranks serving as president for both the TMA and the TAFP.

King holds the distinction of being only the second family medicine physician from Tennessee to be the president of the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP), one of the largest national medical organizations with more than 93,000 physician members. This year he holds the position of chairman of the board for the organization.

"Being president was a rewarding but full-time job; I was out of town 200 days last year," said King. "It also took me all across the country and even to Paris, France. It also afforded me opportunities such as flying aboard a plane that had United States written on the outside with Secretary of Health and Human Services Mike Leavitt to discussing healthcare issues with Pete Stark and Newt Gingrich."

"The greatest thrill for me though had to be flying with the Blue Angels," said King. "I was the first AAFP president to get to do this." Through a special recommendation from Rear Admiral Richard R. Jeffries, Commander, National Naval Medical Center, who is also a family medicine physician, King was granted permission to participate in a celebrity flight with the Blue Angels.

On Oct. 15, Lt. Frank Keisser, who has more than 23,000 hours in the air and flown in Iraq, took King up for the ride of his life. The forty-five minute flight included flips, turns, loops, dog fight simulation and 'top gun' type maneuvers, which at times pulled G-forces up to 7.1. The flight also included a climb to 8,000 feet and speeds up to 300 knots.

"Before the flight Lt. Keisser gave me instructions on what to do to not pass out during the maneuvers," said King. "My kids did not want me to embarrass them by passing out or throwing up. I made it through the entire 45 minutes without doing either. I did feel like I had an extreme workout of my legs though. But next to my kids, marriage, and salvation, it was the highlight of my life."

When King rotates off the AAFP Board next October, he is not sure what he will do exactly. "I do know that it will include practicing medicine full-time, which means five days a week, three in Selmer and two in Henderson," King said. "I will also continue participating in organized medicine, advocacy, and politics."

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