Academic medicine : journal of the Association of American Medical Colleges
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Review
Why physicians are unprepared to treat patients who have alcohol- and drug-related disorders.
Most primary care physicians do not feel competent to treat alcohol- and drug-related disorders. Physicians generally do not like to work with patients with these disorders and do not find treating them rewarding. Despite large numbers of such patients, the diagnosis and treatment of alcohol- and drug-related disorders are generally considered peripheral to or outside medical matters and ultimately outside medical education. ⋯ Programs that have successfully changed students' attitudes and skills for treatment of addicted patients continue to be exceptional and limited in focus rather than the general practice in U. S. medical schools. The authors review the findings of the literature on these problems, discuss the barriers to educational reform, and propose recommendations for developing an effective medical school curriculum about alcohol- and drug-related disorders.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical Trial
Using feedback from patients' families to teach anesthesia residents.