Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to J Christie-Seely.
Many medical visits are generated by psychosocial problems or their symptoms. Every family physician, therefore, should have counseling skills despite constraints of time and training. This article discusses issues such as the characteristics of effective therapists, the limitations of the medical model, the core role of self-esteem in anxiety and depression, and the importance of purpose and meaning to physical and mental health.
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Teaching the family system concept to physicians is difficult, as it entails a new way of thinking, at odds with the familiar linear medical model that focuses on the individual patient. This conceptual difference and the confusion between working with families in family medicine and family therapy explain the slow or superficial acceptance of family as the unit of care. Five principles have been found to be useful in teaching: (1) specific teaching techniques should take into account previous training and current time constraints; (2) evidence for the relevance of system theory to diagnosis, treatment, and prevention should be evaluated early in the teaching program; (3) clarity of expectations is crucial; (4) emphasis should be on the natural role of the family physician as first-line family advisor and the use of interviewing and observational skills already well developed; and (5) synthesis of the psychosocial and physical aspects of illness will occur naturally if the family physician is the teacher of family system concepts and the role model for their application in practice.