Member of the Month: Muhammad Ali Chaudhary, MD

When Muhammad Ali Chaudhary, MD, arrived in Texas in 2024, he brought with him a career shaped by both global training and a deep commitment to community health. A graduate of Aga Khan University in Pakistan, he honed his expertise through a public health fellowship at Harvard, family medicine training in Pennsylvania, and a clinical fellowship in adolescent addiction at Boston Children’s Hospital. Now an assistant professor at UT Health San Antonio, Chaudhary is building an interdisciplinary adolescent addiction medicine program at the Be Well Institute, aiming to close gaps in care for young people struggling with substance use.

Who or what inspired you to become a family physician?
During medical school, I developed a strong interest in community health and the impact of socioeconomic factors on individual well-being. After graduation, I pursued a public health fellowship, where I gained a deeper understanding of systemic health care challenges. As I progressed through my training, I realized that the most effective way to address the issues I was passionate about—particularly health care disparities in the U.S.—was through family medicine. These disparities often stem from implicit provider biases, patient mistrust, and a breakdown in the doctor-patient relationship. As a family physician, I would be uniquely positioned as the first point of contact to bridge these gaps, build trust, and foster long-term, meaningful relationships with my patients.

Why do you choose to be a TAFP member?
I joined TAFP because I have always valued the role of AAFP chapters in supporting family physicians and advocating for the profession. Since my residency, I have been an active member of my local AAFP chapters, recognizing the tremendous value they provide in professional development, networking, and advocacy. Naturally, when I moved to San Antonio in late 2024, I wanted to continue my involvement and engagement with the family medicine community, making TAFP the ideal organization to join.

What has surprised you most about family medicine?
What has surprised me most about family medicine is the deep level of trust that patients place in their primary care physicians, even in this age of disinformation and widespread mistrust in health care. This trust is both humbling and a significant responsibility. As family physicians, we must honor it by staying up to date with medical knowledge, being mindful of societal realities and patient needs, and advocating for our patients both in the clinic and beyond.

Tell us about what led you to adolescent addiction.
My interest in addiction medicine began before my residency training, during my public health fellowship. I was particularly drawn to the opioid crisis, recognizing the immense preventable suffering caused by institutionalized stigma and outdated, non-evidence-based policies.

Training in family medicine and working as a primary care physician solidified this conviction and allowed me to care for a diverse patient population across all stages of life. During residency, I realized that while some progress had been made in addiction care, most advancements were focused on adults. However, with over 90% of substance use beginning before the age of 18, addiction is primarily an adolescent disorder that we are largely addressing only in adulthood.

This gap in care led me to pursue specialized training in adolescent addiction medicine and develop expertise in treating substance use disorders at their earliest stages.

What do you enjoy doing outside of medicine?
Outside of work, I enjoy reading nonfiction, and my favorite book recently has been Understanding Power by Noam Chomsky. I’m also an avid traveler with a particular interest in places rich in history. Some of my favorite destinations have been Andalusia, Spain, Jerusalem, and Palestine/Israel. My wife and two kids are my trusted companions on these adventures.

TAFP’s Member of the Month program highlights Texas family physicians in TAFP News Now and on the TAFP website. We feature a biography and a Q&A with a different TAFP member each month and his or her unique approach to family medicine. If you know an outstanding family physician colleague who you think should be featured as a Member of the Month or if you’d like to tell your own story, nominate yourself or your colleague by contacting TAFP by email at tafp@tafp.org or by phone at (512) 329-8666.