Statement attributable to:
Dr. Ronald Kessler, Ph.D.,
Department of Health Care Policy
Harvard Medical School
AAFP Statement: No Evidence That Family Physicians Have a Lower Success Rate Treating Depression
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, June 19, 2003
Contact:
Adam Lee
American Academy of Family Physicians
(800) 274-2237 Ext. 5221
alee@aafp.org
“I want to correct an error in statements I made to the press regarding the results of a June 16 Journal of American Medical Association article published by my colleagues and myself titled ‘The Epidemiology of Major Depressive Disorder.’
The correction refers to my statements characterizing ‘family doctors’ as providing inadequate treatment of depression. These statements should have referred to ‘general medical doctors,’ which include all physicians other than psychiatrists (e.g., general practitioners, internists, family physicians, obstetrician-gynecologists, and other medical specialists), rather than to ‘family physicians.’ There is no evidence in our study that family physicians have a lower rate of successfully treating depression than other general medical doctors. I regret having unfairly singled out family medicine specialists in my comments.
Although our study cites no evidence on this matter, I would also note that a 1999 article published in the Archives of Family Medicine found that ‘the degree of formal evaluation [for depression] varied markedly by specialty, with family physicians being more likely to follow recommended guidelines for diagnostic evaluation.’”
The correction refers to my statements characterizing ‘family doctors’ as providing inadequate treatment of depression. These statements should have referred to ‘general medical doctors,’ which include all physicians other than psychiatrists (e.g., general practitioners, internists, family physicians, obstetrician-gynecologists, and other medical specialists), rather than to ‘family physicians.’ There is no evidence in our study that family physicians have a lower rate of successfully treating depression than other general medical doctors. I regret having unfairly singled out family medicine specialists in my comments.
Although our study cites no evidence on this matter, I would also note that a 1999 article published in the Archives of Family Medicine found that ‘the degree of formal evaluation [for depression] varied markedly by specialty, with family physicians being more likely to follow recommended guidelines for diagnostic evaluation.’”
EDITOR’S NOTE: Family physicians provide comprehensive care to all members of the family and serve as the patient’s advocate in the health care system. There are more than 88,000 family physicians/general practitioners in the United States. In fact, almost 200 million office visits are made to family physicians each year – that’s 75 million more visits than to any other medical specialty.
Family physicians, like other medical specialists, complete an extensive three-year residency program after graduating from medical school. As part of their residency, family physicians receive training in six major medical areas: pediatrics, obstetrics and gynecology, internal medicine, psychiatry and neurology, surgery, and community medicine.
Family physicians, like other medical specialists, complete an extensive three-year residency program after graduating from medical school. As part of their residency, family physicians receive training in six major medical areas: pediatrics, obstetrics and gynecology, internal medicine, psychiatry and neurology, surgery, and community medicine.
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Founded in 1947, the AAFP represents more than 93,000 physicians and medical students nationwide. It is the only medical society devoted solely to primary care.
Nearly one in four of all office visits are made to family physicians. That is 215 million office visits each year – nearly 48 million more than the next medical specialty. Today, family physicians provide the majority of care for America’s underserved and rural populations.
In the increasingly fragmented world of health care where many medical specialties limit their practice to a particular organ, disease, age or sex, family physicians are dedicated to treating the whole person across the full spectrum of ages. Family medicine’s cornerstone is an ongoing, personal patient-physician relationship focused on integrated care.
To learn more about the American Academy of Family Physicians and about the specialty of family medicine, please visit www.aafp.org.
For more information about the AAFP's positions on issues and clinical care and downloadable multi-media on family medicine and health care, visit the AAFP Media Center.
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