Change Management in General Practice

Abstract

The medical profession is conservative. Even so, coping with change has not needed management. It has been something that we just do. But change is now greater and more rapid than ever. Many aspects of our lives are always changing in relation to each other. The socio-political milieu springs to mind, especially in South Africa where conflict has occasioned our failure to their change. The community we serve is in a constant state of change, as are their expectations of us. Our own personal lives change) or at least they are expected to do so. We have heard from every other professor that 50% of that we are taught at medical school is right and 50% is wrong, the problem is which 50% is which. We've also heard that of the body of knowledge that we acquire are medical school. 80% will be irrelevant within 10 years of qualifying. So 10 years into our careers we are equipped with l0% of what we set out to learn. All because of change. This says nothing of the technological changes with which we must deal in practicing what used to be 'the art of medicine'. Our outlook and attitudes to medicine, health and life go through a metamorphosis from the time we qualify as doctors through our careers. The financial environment in which health services operate is crumbling, as new systems usher their way in. The legal framework within which we operate is also changing to facilitate greater access for more people to our services. Some of these changes may seem precipitant, and many are.