Contempo ’81. Family practice

Research and Family Practice In previous reports published in CONTEMPO, we have described the rise of the specialty of family practice. In those articles we stressed the specialty’s major concern to produce young, well-trained physicians who will render comprehensive, continuing, accessible health care. In addition, it has been noted that family practice was the first specialty to have no “grandfathers” admitted to the diplomate status without examination and was the first and only specialty that required periodic recertification to maintain diplomate status. We pointed out with pride such contributions to the whole specialty movement. However, the specialty now seems to have reached a maturation point where it can make important contributions in research.Thus far, the major contributions have been in studies of such entities as practice patterns, epidemiology, methods of classifying diagnosis and management in primary care, organizational administration, drug therapy, and review updates, as well as some clinical.