18/07/2014
WHAT REALLY IS FAMILY MEDICINE?
The 19th century was the age of the general practitioner. During that time, the general practitioner was no different from the family physician. Both were defined chiefly by lack of special training and qualification.
Towards the end of the century, however, major specialties began to emerge. As medical care became more and more specialized in the 1950's and 1960's, a group of so-called “general practitioners” recognized the need for training physicians who were experts in dealing with the whole person, not just with a specific organ system. Finally, in 1969, family practice was recognized as a medical specialty. Family practice physicians are trained to provide quality medical care for the entire family, from cradle to grave. It is estimated that a well-trained family physician can personally handle 90% of a patient's medical needs,
referring to other medical specialists when the need arises.More importantly, the family physician is the manager and coordinator of his patient's overall health care. In our modern,
complicated health care system, it is easy to get lost in the maze of medical sub-
specialists. The family physician is the patient's advocate, who can help the patient negotiate his/her way through the medical maze. With rapid progress in laboratory science and technology, and with more importance given to technical and research skills over personal care, general practice and all forms of primary medical care became less popular as a career.
The first half of the 20th century was characterized by further fragmentation of the major specialties into sub-specialties with more emphasis on technology. The consequences of this were a reduction in the number of physicians available for primary or even comprehensive health care, a deterioration of the doctor-patient relationship, a dilemma, at the patient's
level, as to which subspecialty his complaint belongs to.
As the age of specialization reached its peak, the need for a new kind of family physician began to emerge. The new family physician is different from the general practitioner.
Instead of being the unspecialized physician, he is now well recognized and has specific training and qualifications. The family physician is, by nature and function a generalist. He is qualified to provide continuing and comprehensive health maintenance as well as medical care to the entire family regardless of s*x, age or type of problem whether biological, behavioral or social. This physician serves as the patient's or family's advocate in all health related matters, including the appropriate use of consultants and community resources, if required.
The family physician has an important role to play in the field of health education.
His role is not only in the diagnosis and treatment of the disease after its occurrence, but also in the early diagnosis and prevention of that disease, be it through vaccination or by way of following a certain life or nutritional pattern and avoiding causative factors.
The family physician is qualified to practice in several fields of medicine including:
Internal Medicine, Pediatrics, Geriatrics, Obstetrics and Gynecology, Minor Surgery, Psychiatry, Ophthalmology, Oto-rhino-laryngology, Dermatology, and Preventive Medicine including Vaccination, in addition to a wide range of emergencies and hospitalization. Family physicians
possess unique skills, attitudes, and knowledge that qualifies them to provide continuing, comprehensive, coordinative and personalized care, to early detection and management of illness, to the prevention of disease and maintenance of health, as well as internal or emergency medicine (catastrophe medicine and coordination, CPR, suturing wounds, boil incision and drainage, treating burns, shock management, acute pain management, EKG taking and interpretation, etc).
The family physician takes care of his patients in the clinic, at home, or in the hospital. Moreover, he is specialized in occupational medicine. Thus, he can aim at managing work related injuries and illnesses, providing prevention systems to reduce the incidence of on-job injuries, and is best qualified to screen for employee health problems. Incidentally, family
physicians are specifically trained for and skilled in providing primary care to the healthy individual or personnel. This primary care includes pre-employment and periodic health examinations to the employees, health promotion, disease prevention, health maintenance, counseling, patient education (with health pamphlet distribution) etc.
