Clif Knight, MD, CPE, FAAFP

Biography

Clif Knight, MD, CPE, FAAFP is a family physician and has been named the next ​assistant ​dean of ​clinical affairs for the Marian University College of Osteopathic Medicine (MU-COM). 

Since 2014, Dr. Knight served as ​senior ​vice ​president for ​education at the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) based in Leawood, Kansas where he oversaw all AAFP organizational activities related to medical education, continuing medical education, CME credit system, and journal media. These areas included: education and training of medical students and residents; student interest in the specialty of family medicine; federal policies that affect medical education and healthcare workforce; CME curriculum development, production, and accreditation and regulations; the AAFP’s CME credit system; as well as the three journals published by the AAFP. He previously served as ​chief ​academic and ​medical ​affairs ​officer for Community Health Network in Indianapolis, Indiana. He also has experience as family medicine residency program director and in private practice in Flora, rural Indiana.

Dr. Knight is an Indianapolis native and grew up less than ​five miles from Marian University. He earned a B.S. in Medical Technology from Ball State University and the St. Francis School of Medical Technology in Beech Grove, Indiana. He graduated from the Indiana University School Medicine and then completed Family Medicine residency at Community East in Indianapolis and subsequently Faculty Development fellowship through the Department of Family Medicine at University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill. He is board certified by the American Board of Family Medicine. He achieved Certified Physician Executive designation through the American Association for Physician Leadership and the Certifying Commission in Medical Management. 

Dr. Knight served on the Marian University Board of Trustees from 2011 to 2015 and was on the MU-COM Admissions Committee from 2012 to 2014. He is a Fellow of the AAFP and served on their Board of Directors from 2012 to 2014. He was president of the Indiana Academy of Family Physicians in 1997. Additionally, he served on the Indiana Medical Education Board as well as the Indiana Medicaid Therapeutics Committee which he chaired in 2009. In 2004 the Indiana Academy of Family Physicians awarded him the A. Alan Fischer Award for outstanding contributions to education in Family Medicine in Indiana. In 2019, the American Medical Association Women Physicians Section recognized him as an Inspiration Award Honoree for his contributions working to achieve gender equity in medicine.

In addition to education, Dr. Knight is committed to promoting patient safety, clinician well-being, equity for women in medicine and physicians in underrepresented categories, physician leadership development, and use of performance improvement tools and techniques to improve healthcare and health outcomes. He led the AAFP’s Physician Health First initiative on improving family physician well-being and professional satisfaction. He helped create the AAFP’s Annual Physician Well-being Conference. Dr. Knight served on the steering committee for the National Academy of Medicine Action Collaborative on Clinician Well-being.