Who needs a general physician?

To determine the opinions of general practitioners (GPs) on requirements for a general medical service, and whether doctors themselves, when ill, prefer admission under a generalist or a specialist.

One questionnaire was distributed to 100 GPs and a second questionnaire to 144 doctors in both general and hospital practice.

Among physicians debate about the role of generalists has focussed on their emergency workload, but general practitioners also see an important need for generalists in the outpatient clinic. General practitioners recognise the necessity of increasing specialisation, but are concerned that it is leading some physicians to practise as 'partialists'. Both of these findings have implications for the training of junior physicians and the continuing education of consultants. The survey also revealed that if they themselves were taken ill, consultants were slightly more likely to prefer admission under the care of a specialist, whilst most GPs would prefer admission under a generalist.