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Nostalgia doesn't help recruitment
EDITOR,--Per Fugelli and Iona Heath describe a utopian model of general practice that I find it difficult to identify with.1 The vision of a paternalistic doctor who shields his patients from the dangers of modern medicine and steers them through various life crises single handedly seems to ignore reality.Patients in the late 20th century are sophisticated: they demand the latest in technology to diagnose their symptoms, and if it is available why shouldn't they? There are enough missed diagnoses to make us all feel humble at times. And isn't it more appropriate for a nurse to perform a cervical smear test and a health visitor to check a child's development? It is certainly appropriate for administrators to deal with paperwork, fund managers to deal with contracts, and young people on youth training schemes to make coffee. It is arrogant of doctors to think they can do it all themselves.
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- The nature of general practice
- Per Fugelli and Iona Heath
BMJ 1996 312: 456-457.[Extract] [Full Text]
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