Community office experience for family medicine residents

Departments of family medicine have certain responsibilities for administering and supporting an office-based program for family medicine residents. A firm belief in the importance of the program and the provision of adequate financial remuneration for preceptors are necessary for the program to succeed. The problems and issues related to setting up such a program are described in this article. The role of the family preceptor is an active one. He will probably need to make alterations to his practice to accommodate the resident. Evaluations of a recent program by both residents and preceptors are discussed. They indicate that ongoing teaching seminars as described in this paper help in preparing and monitoring such programs.