On being relationship-centred
Abstract
In my previous editorial,1 I mentioned the key ethos of our discipline, relationshipcentredness, which is a natural extension of our aspiration of focusing on the person behind the illness, by practising person-centred care within the context of the extended healthcare team.2 This aspiration is shared around the globe in the wider family medicine (FM) community. The different interpretations around the globe of what is meant by “general practice” and “family medicine” were discussed in one of the Besrour Centre’s papers, which grappled with the challenge of finding a global definition of FM.3 The authors concluded that, universally, the discipline remained responsive to local health needs, despite being practised in various forms across the globe. To remain locally relevant, the discipline and its practitioners’ unifying role (and identity) should remain grounded in relationships of care (with patients, colleagues and the community).
