Rebecca Malik | PubMed Health

PubMed2004

Being community-responsive physicians. Doing the right thing.

OBJECTIVE: To explore how primary care physicians respond to a community's needs and challenges. DESIGN: Qualitative study using focus groups. SETTING: Fee-for-service practices or community health centres in downtown Toronto, Ont. PARTICIPANTS: Purposive sample of 21 community family physicians (10 women and 11 men). METHOD: Participants were invited to join focus groups of four to six physicians. Themes were derived from qualitative analysis of the data using grounded theory. MAIN FINDINGS: Three major themes were identified by these community-responsive physicians: they carry out specific roles (collaborator, health educator, advocate, resource, and tailor of care); they face several challenges, including lack of funding and a dysfunctional health care system; and they share common beliefs about practising medicine. Whether current health care structures support physicians to actually carry out these roles in practice, however, is unclear. CONCLUSION: This study increased understanding of how primary care physicians respond to community needs and what they experience in the process.

Adult↗

PubMed2002

Health promotion, the family physician and youth: improving the connection.

BACKGROUND: There is evidence to link adolescent morbidity and mortality with their high-risk behaviour. As a result, the medical community has increased its focus on health promotion and disease prevention. Family physicians, in particular, appear to be in an optimal position to intervene. There is little information, however, on how adolescents would perceive such interventions. OBJECTIVE: This study was designed to gain an understanding of adolescents' perceptions about the role of family physicians in health promotion and disease prevention. METHODS: Qualitative methodology was used involving focus groups. The groups were conducted in community organizations for youth. Fifty-four adolescents ages 13-17 participated in seven focus groups. Themes were derived from qualitative analysis of the data. RESULTS: Four themes were found: (i) adolescents are concerned about the potential direct consequences of the health behaviours they engage in; (ii) adolescents use family physicians primarily to address biomedical health issues rather than to discuss non-acute health concerns; (iii) adolescents are reluctant to discuss health concerns with family physicians because they are worried about lack of confidentiality; and (iv) adolescents choose to speak to specific individuals based upon how comfortable they feel talking to them about specific health concerns. CONCLUSION: This study found that the adolescents did not see the role of the family physician as a health promoter. The themes help provide family physicians with a better understanding of how adolescents perceive them. With this understanding, improved ways of creating doctor-patient relationships with adolescents may be developed.

Adolescent↗