Michelle’s story: The complexity of patient care in a family medicine residency clinic

Family medicine covers all ages and specializes in chronic disease management as well as acute care medicine. As the health of the population continues to grow in complexity, treating patients appropriately and efficiently is imperative to improving health outcomes and managing health care costs. Family medicine physicians are uniquely poised to provide this type of care. A patient story plus a look at the patients seen over the course of a day within a family medicine residency clinic explores the complexity of care and the ability of family medicine physicians to provide the necessary care. Taking a close look at who comes through our door on a particular day highlights 3 points: primary care physicians are seeing patients with an increasing complexity of needs, our society is witnessing an extreme increase in patients suffering with mental health problems and substance use disorders, and addressing social determinants of health must be part of the solution.