#pcp15 | The Challenge: Internal Medicine Training

The Challenge: Internal Medicine Training

This year's A. G. Sison Lecture featured Dr. David Fleming, the president
of the American College of Physicians, to discuss the future of Internal
Medicine training and practice. He provided an overview of the process and
intricacies of the Internal Medicine training programs in the United States
and Europe. In his presentation, he mentioned the report of Dr. Kirch last
March 2015 that the shortage of primary care physicians is significant and
that the supply of physicians is estimated to be inadequate to meet the
quality medical care the aging population will need. He identified several
factors that has contributed to the declining supply of internists namely,
cost of education, workload and stress, complexity of patients, changing
practice environment, and dissatisfied mentors and physicians in practice.
An important factor he mentioned are the debts a physician incurs as one
continues his journey to become an internist. He likewise mentioned the
importance of ambulatory care and emphasized the need to continuously hone
our clinical and diagnostic skills, in addition to the core skills we have
been taught in medical school. He pointed out the improtance of developing
good clinical habits and improving skills including thorough physical
examination early in training so that one could develop a solid foundation
of the fundamentals. The lecture by Dr. Fleming wil surely help and guide
physicians, especially those in training and about to begin their practice.
We may be a little behind resources-wise as compared to our western
counterparts, however the challenges he presented are also widely
encountered in our setting. May his lecture help us overcome the many
challenges we have ahead as we continue to strive to be the internists we
have always aspired to be.

- Kristianne Medina, MD