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The Academy of Family Physicians of India (AFPI), in association with the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) and National Health Systems Resource Centre (NHSRC), organised the first ever National Conference on Family Medicine and Primary Care (FMPC) 2013 with the theme “Preparing Multi-skilled and Competent Primary Care Physicians: Consensus on Family Medicine in India.’’
Held on April 20-21, 2013, at the India International Centre in New Delhi, the conference was inaugurated by Keshav Desiraju, Secretary (H&FW) Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, Government of India in presence of a large number of Indian and international experts in family medicine and primary care including Professor. Michael Kidd President Elect, World Organization of Family Doctor, Professor Srinath Reddy, President, PHFI, Dr Purushottam Lal, Member, Board of Governors, Medical Council of India and Dr T Sundararaman, Executive Director, NHSRC National Rural Health Mission MOHFW GOI.
Nation Wide Primary Healthcare Services (NationWide), a chain of primary care clinics, was principal sponsor and preferred partner for this event. The conference was also supported by international partners –the World Organisation of Family Doctors (Wonca ) and The Spice Route, and academic partners—Christian Medical College, Vellore; All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Jodhpur; Calicut Medical College; and the Indian Council of Medical Research.
In his opening address, Health Secretary, MoHFW, Desiraju, focussed on the tug of war between state and government when it comes to implementing universal healthcare. “There is a lot of discussion in India on UHC, however, there is no consensus that there needs to be a provision of health services universally by the state. Poverty, lack of resources and political barriers to healthcare in states complicate this further.” He also declared that MCI is soon set to approve a curriculum or course in family medicine. This along with the rising number of students acquiring DNB degrees was a good indicator of the expansion of family medicine in India.The opening session saw Dr Sunil Abraham dwell on the role of family physicians in primary healthcare and community healthcare centres and how doctors trained in India are ill equipped to deal with it. He emphasised the role of a generalist specialist at a PHC who can manage 80 per cent of all the medical problems of the community providing acceptable cost effective quality care. This would lead to less crowding and better access while improving the quality of care as one moves to tertiary care facilities. Dr William Wong then enumerated how GPs can intervene and improve health outcomes in marginalised groups who might have more access to such vulnerable populations and can tackle them better. The next session was on how culture plays an important role in the increasing burden of NCDs in the world and how family physicians can help bring about required changes.
Dr Raman Kumar, Chairperson, Organising Committee FMPC 2013 and President, Academy of Family Physicians of India, said, “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 systems. Family Medicine has received attention in several policy documents of the Government of India, including the National Health Policy 2002. Such a conference is the need of the hour as India is moving towards the goal of all-inclusive health, including the poorest of the poor, who cannot afford multi-speciality and super-specialty hospital care.”
Dr Santanu Chattopadhyay, Founder & CEO, NationWide Primary Healthcare Services. and a key note speaker at the conference said, “Current healthcare scenario in India is staring at a crisis, as patients face increasing healthcare expenses due to the skewed emphasis on hospitals and super-speciality care. Much of this expense can be avoided if the primary care provision is strengthened, which can only happen when we have a robust system for training and producing more family physicians.”
Dr. Raman Kumar said that more than 400 delegates and experts from India and from neighbouring countries are participating in the conference with the common objective of developing the discipline of Family Medicine in Nursing.
Prasanth K S Convener, National Consultation on Family Medicine Program and Senior Consultant (Public Health Administration) of National Health Systems Resource Centre said, “The conference is also hosting a national consultation convened by National Health System Resource Centre (NHSR), National Rural Health Mission (NRHM), Ministry of Health and Family Welfare Government of India. During the conference a number of Indian and international experts in family medicine and primary care have been deliberating on the scope of expanding family medicine programmes in India—especially on the critical skills to be ensured at a Community Health centre level.”
According to Dr Raman Kumar, a rainbow session is also going to be organised— where International family physicians of Indian origin is participating.
Young delegates from India, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka is participating in huge number. There is a special session called Youth Leadership Summit for Primary Health Care (YLS- PHC), where selected students and young healthcare professionals will present their concept notes on how to strengthen primary healthcare in India.
The conference brought together Indian and international experts in family medicine and primary care with a common objective to define family medicine in India. The event will also host a National Consultation convened by NRHM, NHSRC and MOHFW Government of India, on development of Family Medicine Programme to ensure availability of skilled doctors at Community Health Centre (CHC) level.
Apart from CME and scientific seminars sessions, family medicine practitioners and trainees, officials from the NRHM, NHSRC and MOHFW Government of India, and other stakeholders from the private health sector discussed the following topics:
- Making family medicine a preferred career choice for Indian Medical Graduates- Challenges and Solutions
- Consultation and communication skills required to improve patient satisfaction
- Expanding scope of family medicine in nursing
- Governance and regulatory issues
- Emerging models in family practice in India
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