Family home assessment in family practice residency programs

Physician-patient encounters in the home setting have decreased dramatically in the United States in recent years. This has occurred in spite of the continued important role the home environment plays in family health and family illness care. Although decreasing in frequency, home visits are still an important facet of family practice. A survey of family practice residency programs revealed that home visits are being done in most programs and that faculty members have a positive outlook on their importance. Programs were found to vary widely in the types of learning experiences available to residents. There is an apparent need for residency programs to improve their teaching efforts involving family home visiting by establishing objectives, structured curricular time, clinical experience, and protocols consistent with this purpose.