AAFP Stuck In 1996
In an unintentional sad commentary on the state of family medicine, Family Practice Management has decided to reproduce an article from 1996 called Rediscovering the Joy of Family Practice. How embarrassing is that? That is around the time I started in practice. Funny thing, I don’t remember EMRs, quality metrics, the overgrowth of hospital administrators, prior authorizations, etc. Do you think that maybe, just maybe, this article is out of touch with today’s reality? You can read it yourself and tell me what you think. I think the most pitiful issues, though, is that they had to reproduce what they call and FPM classic because they probably couldn’t get anyone to write about the Joy of Family Practice today. Of course, they could have asked a Direct Primary Care doctor but that would send the wrong message. The AAFP doesn’t ever want to teach others to fight back against the system, embrace the free market or eschew the insurance companies. That would make their friends mad.
I saw this article too and thought it was pretty ironic. It reminded me of a motivational sign in the stairwell of the local hospital which is something to the effect of “When things get tough, remember why you went into the profession”. The irony, which I guess the hospital administrators missed, is that so many of the things that make things tough have nothing to do with why I went into the profession.
Great comment.