IFM | Whole Health: Medicine's Course Correction

About this episode

The episode discusses the concept of whole health in primary care and its implications for practice and patient outcomes.

I n this episode of Inside Family Medicine Andrew Bazemore, MD, MPH, and Beth Polk, MD, FAAFP join us to discuss whole health in primary care. Dr. Bazemore distinguishes whole health (physical, behavioral, spiritual and socioeconomic well-being across individuals, families and communities) from whole health care (how care is organized), emphasizing a shift from "What's the matter with you?" to "What matters to you?" Dr. Polk connects whole health to lifestyle medicine's pillars and stresses addressing drivers of outcomes beyond the exam room, including social needs. They cite examples from the VA whole health model and community health centers, discuss team-based care, group visits and using existing evaluation and management (E/M) billing while advocating for payment reform. The episode highlights training needs in residency programs, small, actionable practice changes, clinician well-being and the risks and opportunities of AI in supporting whole health. Topics by timestamp 00:00 Welcome and guests 01:25 Why family medicine 03:36 Why whole health now 05:22 Defining whole health 08:22 Lifestyle medicine link 10:54 Principles and team care 13:03 Real-world examples 16:09 Billing…

People in this episode

Guests: Andrew Bazemore, MD, MPH, Beth Polk, MD, FAAFP

Topics covered

• whole health
• primary care
• lifestyle medicine
• team-based care
• clinician well-being
• AI in healthcare

Keywords

• whole health
• primary care
• lifestyle medicine
• team-based care
• AI
• clinician well-being
• social needs
• payment reform

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: American Academy of Family Physicians, VA

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