Even before social distancing disrupted normative expectations and prompted an immediate shift to remote doctor/patient interactions, technology companies-Amazon, Apple, and Google-were preparing to disrupt medical care through the innovative use of technology. This article presents a possible scenario for how technology, in the near future, will completely up-end primary care practice. What does face-to-face interaction accomplish that cannot be done remotely? What do family physicians offer that cannot be accomplished by technology? More than just relationship, family medicine brings the therapeutic use of the self to engage with people, an ability to advocate for patients, and the ability to step back and reflect on the power of relationships. In addition, family physicians bring wisdom, making decisions in the liminal state between patient and physician, the resulting product of the human connection but also the ability to manage complexity using the best evidence. The ability to do both gives family medicine physician the skills to leverage but also control the coming big data.
Keywords: Clinical Decision-Making; Communication; Evidence-Based Practice; Family Medicine; Family Physicians; Narrative Medicine; Organizational Innovation; Physician's Practice Patterns; Primary Health Care; Technology.
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