|  | | | A Message from the Founding Program Director |  |
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Nancy W. Dickey, MD
1998-1999 President of the American Medical Association
A Strong leader for Medicine
During my inaugural remarks I spoke about the major challenges facing our profession and the things that WE must do TOGETHER if we are to safeguard our profession for the next generation of patients and physicians. Practicing medicine is a privilege and a responsibility. From the day we enter medical school to our years of residency and post-graduate training through our practice lives, we must regularly evaluate what concerns exist and how to meet the challenges to preserve the core principles of this honorable calling. To illustrate my concerns, I brought to the stage several props.
Using a physician’s black bag to symbolize our journey, I carried a stethoscope to remind each of us that we are physicians first. Our patients needs and the ability of physicians to respond to those needs must be secured. Thus, even while we advocate for substantial change in the system, the AMA must aggressively and extensively seek solutions for physicians facing inequity and abuse in the current system. I also carried a key, indicating that the AMA...and it’s organized voice...is the key to calling for and creating real reform in the healthcare delivery system. Finally, I carried an appointment card which symbolizes that any health system reform activity must include a commitment to universal access to care and a means to pay for it. Physicians have a powerful voice, we should use a part of that voice to address this massive problem.
In order for any of the above things to occur, physicians across this nation must make a recommitment to ethics and professionalism. It is our strong standards and demanding principles that provide the foundation for all that we do. If there is doubt among our patients, the community, or the general public about what we are committed to... and there is...then we will not have the standing to seek change. We must teach ethical standards to students and residents. We must review the standards during continuing education experiences; and we must daily act in ways that loudly proclaim that out first commitment is to that which is best for our patients. We must leave no doubt in the minds of the observer or the cynic that we serve our patient’s well-being before our own.
If we do these things, we will hand the profession on to the next generation in even better condition than we received it. Our patients, our communities, and our colleagues deserve no less. |
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Family Medicine Center of Brazos Valley: From the Founding Program Director
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