AAFP Past President Richard Roberts, M.D., J.D., drew a standing ovation from national Academy and constituent chapter leaders when he spoke what he called "the unvarnished truth," about the Academy's Future of Family Medicine project here on May 6.
Roberts, of Madison, Wis., delivered a joint plenary session for attendees of the Annual Leadership Forum and National Conference of Special Constituencies.
Family Medicine Revolves Around Relationships, Says Speaker
By Sheri Porter
• Kansas City, Mo.
5/10/2005
The FFM report, unveiled in 2004 and championing a new model of care, was a compass heading, Roberts said, but "we never told you what direction to go -- north, south, east or west."
Then Roberts made this pronouncement: The future of family medicine is all about relationships.
"I want you to think about the relationships you have with the people who entrust their lives to you," said Roberts. "How easy is it for them to get to you?"
Roberts spoke of changing technologies -- of communicating with patients by e-mail and telephone. "We've got docs wanting more time with patients and patients wanting more time with docs," said Roberts. "I call my hospitalized patients every day from wherever in the world I happen to be, because what patients are really concerned about is, 'Are you staying connected to me -- are you still in the loop?'"
He warmed his audience with real-life stories about remarkable patient encounters and shared this quote from a patient about adapting to change: "If we always do what we've always done, then we'll always get what we've always got."
Statistics about the current state of health care in the United States peppered the presentation. According to Roberts, the United States spends $1.9 trillion -- 15.5 percent of the gross domestic product -- annually on health care. Despite that, one in four Americans has too little or no health insurance. Overall, the United States is nowhere near the top of the list in health care rankings of developed nations in areas such as infant mortality rates.
Why, Roberts asked, is it often so difficult to get physicians to use an evidence-based approach to practicing medicine? Consider this: Health care delivered in academic-based health centers provides the framework for evidence-based medicine -- even though in an average month, just one patient in a thousand is admitted to such an institution. "We have the wrong people asking the wrong questions about the wrong patients in the wrong setting and getting the wrong answers," said Roberts. "It's like asking zoo keepers to take care of a dairy herd."
Maps showing the country's medically underserved areas by county appeared on an overhead screen as Roberts talked about "a tremendous maldistribution" of medical resources. "We have a system that is horribly wasteful -- one-third to one-half of interventions are unnecessary, or at the very least, not very helpful," he said.
According to Roberts, patients who choose a primary care physician as their personal doctor spend 33 percent less on their health care and are 19 percent less likely to die than patients utilizing a subspecialist for primary care.
"Why are FPs good for America? Because we do health care better than any other specialty," said Roberts. "Nobody can hold a candle to us."
"America depends on FPs," said Roberts. That's why he's taken to using this phrase: "The future is family medicine."
Then Roberts made this pronouncement: The future of family medicine is all about relationships.
"I want you to think about the relationships you have with the people who entrust their lives to you," said Roberts. "How easy is it for them to get to you?"
Roberts spoke of changing technologies -- of communicating with patients by e-mail and telephone. "We've got docs wanting more time with patients and patients wanting more time with docs," said Roberts. "I call my hospitalized patients every day from wherever in the world I happen to be, because what patients are really concerned about is, 'Are you staying connected to me -- are you still in the loop?'"
He warmed his audience with real-life stories about remarkable patient encounters and shared this quote from a patient about adapting to change: "If we always do what we've always done, then we'll always get what we've always got."
Statistics about the current state of health care in the United States peppered the presentation. According to Roberts, the United States spends $1.9 trillion -- 15.5 percent of the gross domestic product -- annually on health care. Despite that, one in four Americans has too little or no health insurance. Overall, the United States is nowhere near the top of the list in health care rankings of developed nations in areas such as infant mortality rates.
Why, Roberts asked, is it often so difficult to get physicians to use an evidence-based approach to practicing medicine? Consider this: Health care delivered in academic-based health centers provides the framework for evidence-based medicine -- even though in an average month, just one patient in a thousand is admitted to such an institution. "We have the wrong people asking the wrong questions about the wrong patients in the wrong setting and getting the wrong answers," said Roberts. "It's like asking zoo keepers to take care of a dairy herd."
Maps showing the country's medically underserved areas by county appeared on an overhead screen as Roberts talked about "a tremendous maldistribution" of medical resources. "We have a system that is horribly wasteful -- one-third to one-half of interventions are unnecessary, or at the very least, not very helpful," he said.
According to Roberts, patients who choose a primary care physician as their personal doctor spend 33 percent less on their health care and are 19 percent less likely to die than patients utilizing a subspecialist for primary care.
"Why are FPs good for America? Because we do health care better than any other specialty," said Roberts. "Nobody can hold a candle to us."
"America depends on FPs," said Roberts. That's why he's taken to using this phrase: "The future is family medicine."
