Easy ways to resist change in medicine

doi:10.1136/bmj.329.7480.1473

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Allen F Shaughnessy, faculty1,
David C Slawson, B Louis Barnett Jr professor of family medicine (dslawson@virginia.edu)2

¹ Department of Family Medicine and Community Health, Tufts University School of Medicine, 100 Hospital Road, Malden, MA 02148, USA
² Department of Family Medicine, Box 800729, University of Virginia Health Sciences Center, Charlottesville, VA 22908, USA

Correspondence to: D C Slawson

These time honoured techniques will help doctors resist the forces that prevail on them to change their ways of taking care of patients

Numerous forces have been imposed on physicians to make them change their practice behaviours. Under the guise of “quality improvement,” managed care organisations, accrediting bodies, and the government are meddling in medicine. Even continuing medical education, previously a form of intellectual entertainment or a forum for much needed sleep, has refocused its efforts towards improving the care of patients (figure).

Techniques to resist change

Techniques are available, however, that will allow doctors to practise unimpeded by new information that should induce change. To avoid succumbing to both the inner and outer forces prompting change, we offer the following techniques and methods.