5 minute read
FROM THE PRESIDENT
from WONCA News May 2022
by WONCA
M A Y 2 0 2 2
Family Doctor Day provides all of us a golden opportunity to shine a spotlight on the central role our discipline plays in achieving the goals of UniversalHealthCoverageandHealthforAll. That’s the hallmark of Family Medicine –continuity. People know what that’s worth becausewe’veshownthem:
We plan to stress that globally, and I’m sure the seven WONCA presidents will do so regionally. Each and every one of us can also seize the moment, individually, to advocate on behalf of our field in the communities where we work and live. Check out the toolkit our Communications Officer, Maria Zavala, has assembled for us, complete with graphics, hashtags, useful visual materials,andmore. In preparation for the campaign, the title I’ve chosen for this newsletter is the slogan that the Executive Board arrived at after a brainstorming process. At first glance it might seem simplistic. It’s not. It’s basic, evoking the fundamentals. Let me ‘unpack’ that apparently simple slogan to revealsomeofitscomplexity.
We know who we are, but not everybody else does. We can use this opportunity to make it clear that we represent a medical specialty, with its owncurriculumandresearchbase. How, they may wonder, is our specialty different fromtheothers?Weare... ‘AlwaysTheretoCare’ .
“I’ve been with you during the pandemic. I was there when you expected your first child, and to support you when postpartum challenges kicked in. I tend to your children when they come down with ordinary infections. I can advise you about their vaccinations, about stages of their development that worry you. I recognize when you’ve reached your limit and need time off from work. I can help you sort symptoms of disease from normal physiological responses. And, I plan to be there with you as you age, until, that is, I’m toooldtokeeponworking.I’mhopingtoputthat dayoffbyalsotakinggoodcareofmyself. ” Family Medicine is indeed a clinical discipline, with diagnosing and treating disease being among our primary tasks. But we have a much broader repertoire, including, in the slogan’s words:
We are profoundly aware that social care is a prerequisite for health. Thus, when treatment plans are designed, Family Doctors take all relationshipsintoconsideration.
“Whendiseasestrikes,Iwillcare,notonlyforyou, but also for your family. I know that your wellbeing and potential for healing are tied to, maybe even dependent on, their well-being. For them to be able to support you, they need to be supported. ” During the pandemic, the social determinants of health became even more clear. I presume you recognizetheseexamplesfromyourownpractice: Treating the wounds of a battered woman is of little use if there is no shelter available to her, and if her batterer’s abusive behavior is notaddressed. No matter how good the dietary advice and blood glucose monitoring people with diabetes receive, their condition is not likely to improve if they lack the money to feed themselveswell,andtosupporttheirfamily. The health of women and newborns, always vulnerable during a crisis, was placed in even greater jeopardy during the pandemic when social services were shut down. Even mothers of infants felt duty-bound to fill the gaps the closuresleftbytakingcareofthesickandthe elderly themselves, prioritizing other people’s needs above their own. Few cultures expect men to do the same, and they received little support to help them lighten the women’s load. In short, because we genuinely seek ‘Health for All’ , we need to broaden our definition of ’Health Care’ to reflect our awareness that health and socialcarearefundamentallyinseparable.Wecan then put that into practice, locally, by interweaving our communities’ health and social service systems. On Family Doctor Day, I’d like us to deliver this message to our politicians and policymakers: Please help us bridge the gaps betweenhealthandsocialcare. Finally, intrinsic to the concept of CARE are the roleswefamilydoctorsplayduringdifficulttimes: we serve as both witness and companion. We can `t always heal people. Sometimes, the best we can do is to be there, to provide a safe space for our patients’ pain, to offer them support and comfort. Being a professional partner in the lives of our patients and their families, we CARE for them. I wish all of you a successful Family Doctor Day. Let` s team up to highlight the important medical services we provide. Let’s also not just tell but also show our communities how much we enjoy what we do. We have the most rewarding job in the world. We FAMILY DOCTORS are ALWAYS THERETOCARE.
DR ANNA STAVDAL
W O N C A P R E S I D E N T
Alsoavailablein: Español 中⽂
F T R H O E M E D I T O R
WELCOME TO WONCA NEWS MAY!
May is here, which means World Family Doctor Day is coming! This edition is dedicated to our flagship celebration. It represents an important date to support and acknowledge the central role of Family Doctors and Primary Care Teams in delivering personal, accessible and continuous health care for all. As you know, our 2022 theme is “FamilyDoctors,AlwaysThereto Care” . Always, There, and Care are the three fundamental campaign pillars of this year's campaign, each with meaningful value. Our president, Dr Anna Stavdal,dedicateshercolumnto World Family Doctor Day and explains the reason for this topic and the significance of the 2022 campaign pillars. Find this comprehensive description in our section “From the President" . In our section “From the Headquarters” , WONCA CEO, Dr Harris Lygidakis, reflects on the future of the Community in WONCA and spotlights the collaborative work within our organisation through our members, working parties, special interests groups, and young doctor movements across ourrepresentedregions. In this edition, besides maintaining our call for solidarity and continue to promote multiple ways to support Ukraine, the WONCA Working Party on Mental Health and the WONCA Special Interest Group on Migrant Care, International Health & Travel Medicine issue an additional statement of support regarding therefugeecrisis. WONCA News May also includes information of our World Family Doctor Day 2022 Campaign “FamilyDoctors,AlwaysThereto Care” , and a snapshot of this year’s media kit, including the materials and graphics we’ve prepared to help you tailor your communication and advocacy efforts. Discover all the details of this campaign and join this celebration next Thursday, 19 May2022! In this issue you will also find information related to the two recent celebrations: World Day for Safety and Health at Work and International Day of the Midwife. You can also discover Praia Vermelha (Red Beach), a Brazilian band integrated by familyphysicians. We also share in this edition important updates of the WONCARegionalconferencesfor 2022 and 2023: meet the International Advisory Group of WONCA Rural Health Conference 2022 in Limerick; the 27th WONCA Europe Conference now goes hybrid; discover the details and welcome message of the Vasco Da Gama Movement PreConference 2022; the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners,hostoftheWONCA World Conference 2023 in Sydney, video invitation to join our #WFDD2022 Campaign, and muchmore! Before closing this edition, do not miss out on the most recent announcements and updates from our members and the WONCAFamily. I hope you enjoy this issue, and please remember that you can drop me a line (or an article!) at editor@wonca.net.
Happyreading,andstaysafe! Sincerely,
Maria Dolores Zavala, WONCA Editor
