At the FMPC conference April 2013
It’s imperative to bring back the essence of family medicine and primary care for a truly ‘well’ country. I support the conference and its endeavors. Three cheers to Dr. Raman for his efforts!
India is moving towards Universal Health Coverage (UHC) and National Health Mission (NHM). Multi-skilled and competent primary care providers and their knowledge figure prominently in the evolving schemes, themes, and initiatives of our healthcare system.
Family Medicine has received attention in several policy documents of the Government of India including the National Health Policy 2002. The concept of family medicine has also been supported by Mehta Committee Report, Prime Minister’s National Knowledge Commission, NRHM task force on human resource development, MCI Vision 2015 and Planning Commission’s Steering Committee on Health in 12th National Plan (2012-17).
The conference attempted at bringing Indian and international experts in family medicine and primary care with a common objective to define family medicine in India – the academic discipline and specialty of primary care physicians. It’s main endeavor was to encourage the younger generation of medical doctors to opt for a career in community based health care delivery system.
