Family Medicine: Principles and Practice - Hardcover

Taylor, Robert B.; Phillips, J.; David, A.K.; Johnson, T.A.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0387940251 ISBN 13: 9780387940250

Publisher: Springer Verlag, 1994

Synopsis

Much is new in Family Medicine since the last edition of our textbook. For example, not only is the therapy of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) disease and the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) much different than a few years ago; the epidemiol­ ogy of the disease has also changed and more than half of the family physicians in a rural state such as Oregon have already managed patients with HIV disease or AIDS. 1 There are new immunization recommendations for children and new antibiotics for the treatment of bacterial infections. Computers are bringing medical informatics and on-line consultation into office practice. Medicare physician payment reform is underway and the reality of rationing medical care has been recognized. There has been a recent increase in student interest in a family practice career,2 coincidental with a Council on Graduate Medical Education (COGME) recommendation that at least 50 percent of all residency graduates 3 should enter practice as generalists. Also there is increasing awareness of the need for a 4 Center for Family Practice and Primary Care at the National Institutes of Health. This all-new fourth edition is intended to present the scientific and practical basis of family medicine with special attention to what's new in family medicine. The emphasis is on how the physician provides continuing and comprehensive care for persons of all ages, with clinical content selected from the perspective offamily physicians. The format ofthe book, like the practice of family medicine, continues to change.

About this title

About the Author:

Robert B. Taylor, M.D.
 
 
Robert B. Taylor, M.D. is Professor Emeritus of Family Medicine at the Oregon Health & Science University School of Medicine in Portland, Oregon.  A board-certified family physician, Dr. Taylor is a 1961 graduate of the Temple University School of Medicine.  He trained in the United States Public Health Service Hospital at Norfolk, Virginia, and was in private family practice in New Paltz, New York for fourteen years.  In 1978 he joined the faculty of the Wake Forest University School of Medicine in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.  In 1984, Dr. Taylor moved to Oregon, where he served as Chairman of the Family Medicine Department of the Oregon Health & Science University School of Medicine until 1998 He is the author and editor of 25 medical books including Family Medicine: Principles And Practice (6 editions), White Coat Tales: Medicine's Heroes, Heritage And Misadventures, Medical Wisdom And Doctoring: The Art Of 21st Century Medicine,  Essential Medical Facts Every Clinician Should Know, and Diagnostic Principles and Applications.  Dr. Taylor, who currently resides in Virginia Beach, VA, and his wife, Anita, have two daughters and four grandchildren.

From The New England Journal of Medicine:

Family medicine is the broadest of the generalist disciplines. Physicians who practice this specialty need access to up-to-date information on a broad range of disorders. They practice in a setting that emphasizes health promotion and preventive care while at the same time attempting to meet most of the short-term and long-term needs of a population that varies widely in age. The task of writing a comprehensive reference for this diverse field is challenging, to say the least. The fifth edition of Family Medicine: Principles and Practice is now available to serve the need for such a textbook. The editors of Family Medicine have identified two important emerging themes in family practice: managed care and the need to base the management of disease on published scientific evidence.

The goal of this book is to cover 90 percent of the problems seen by a generalist in daily practice. To accomplish this task, the editors assembled a large group of contributing authors. Each chapter has at least one family physician as a coauthor. Several new chapters have been added: "Population-Based Health Care," "Health Promotion," "Genetic Disorders," "Behavioral Problems of Children," "Somatoform Disorders," "Clinical Guidelines," and "Managed Care." All chapters have been updated with current medical evidence related to diagnosis and management.

Given the difficult task of covering such a broad field, Family Medicine does a creditable job. The chapters are succinct and well illustrated. Inevitably, changes in management have occurred since the publication date. The illustrations in the section on dermatology suffer from a lack of color and should perhaps have been omitted. Most family physicians will find this textbook helpful for ready reference. It will also be used by students and residents striving to increase their scientific knowledge of the field. It remains to be seen whether newer methods of information technology will take over the function this book ably serves. For the present, books still have a useful role as reference tools for practicing family physicians.

Reviewed by David N. Little, M.D.
Copyright © 1998 Massachusetts Medical Society. All rights reserved. The New England Journal of Medicine is a registered trademark of the MMS.

About this edition

• Publisher: Springer Verlag
• Publication date: 1994
• ISBN 10: 0387940251
• ISBN 13: 9780387940250
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 4
• Number of pages: 1091