Part of the Solution

I really don't know what I want to do when I grow up. I've had a fascination and attraction to many of the disciplines in medicine and surgery over the years.  When I was first assisting hand replant surgery, I loved hand surgery. When I was assisting taking out a parotid tumor and dissecting around the facial nerve, I loved HEENT. When I was injecting knees with viscosupplementation solution, I loved orthopaedic medicine. When I'm sitting at the bedside with a patient and her family,  I love hospital medicine.  

So I have this great curse of not really knowing what I want to do when I grow up, but a clear knowledge that I want to do it. For me, medical school goes well beyond the access to the field of medicine. It is about deciding what to do with the rest of my life, literally. One thing keeps coming to the surface...being part of the solution. And what that seems to mean is being part of primary care, and increasing care and access to care for the general population.  Family Medicine keeps coming to the surface.

Family Practice is the medical specialty that provides continuing and comprehensive health care for individuals and families. All behaviors, sciences, sexes, ages, organ systems and clinical processes are a part of the practice of family medicine. The patient-physician relationship is a key feature of family medicine, but is this view more hype and ghostly shadows than reality?

I really would like to care for people of both genders and all ages. I'd love to be able to diagnose and treat 90 percent of all patient problems, including biological and mental health concerns without the use of specialty referral.  I have grand visions of treating conditions of all organ systems rather than limiting their practice to specific organ systems (although I won't throw out my 20 year experience in surgery and orthopedics). I believe that treating the whole patient by taking into account all the medical, social and mental health concerns of the individual is not just important but imperative. I believe that family medicine has the best chance of practicing  disease prevention and health maintenance in addition to treating illness.

So is it family medicine? I can only hope to be part of the solution. Actually, for the moment, I'd just like to pass biochemistry. Per chance to dream.