If that doctor behaves this way, I choose another. It's a common behavior now. But a reflection must be made with the citizen and with the assisted person: with what criterion did he choose or would he choose the family doctor? Why does he have his studio a hundred meters from his home? Why does he also come home after dinner or on Sundays? Why does he never object to requests for investigations? Why is it never missing? Why are you working long hours? It almost seems that you are choosing not a qualified and experienced professional, but a series of "comforts".
Central theme of the medical profession it is that of the ability of individuals and the category to adapt their skills to the rapid evolution that has taken place in Healthcare over the last twenty years. It is not just a question of medical knowledge, which in itself requires constant multidisciplinary comparison, but in general of care skills necessary to provide an effective and efficient service. A profoundly different scenario, also from an emotional and relational point of view, from what many of us experienced just ten years ago. In this perspective, values such as "independence" and "professional autonomy" must be confronted, on the one hand, with a company policy suited to the local socio-economic context, organizational processes and patient needs, and, on the other, with a policy capable of developing and keeping general practice connected with the rest of the company system, motivating doctors through continuous professional development.
Why not value, then, the family doctor who participates in continuous training activities, in periodic meetings to review their work together with family and/or reference hospital colleagues? If outpatient hours and home visits fill up most of the day, where does the doctor carve out the time to study both the problems/illnesses of his clients and in general to keep his knowledge and skills up to date? In a modern relationship of fiduciary agent of the patient, the general practitioner must equip himself to become the citizen's guide in the multiplicity of health services on offer, a supportive guide who must not be extraneous to the patient's experiences (especially if these are those of suffering), but also be the guarantor of the selection of the most effective service and the consultant capable of indicating the health structure suitable for satisfying the patient's needs.
Saffi Ettore Giustini
From "Corriere della Sera .it/Salute"
