Primary care for women under managed care: Clinical issues

Discusses the advantages & disadvantages of a managed care health system as it pertains to women, focusing on clinical issues in primary care. The current US system is described as fragmentary, with a unifying medical protocol lacking on the levels of both basic clinical services & overall conceptualizations of women's health. Specific solutions & problems of managed care are identified for the clinical areas of preventive, episodic, chronic disease, & interpersonal treatment. Solutions underline the innovative strategies available under managed care, particularly incentives for prevention for both caregiver & patient. Problems highlight the erosion of the doctor-patient relationship via productivity pressures, disruptions in continuity, & financial conflict of interests. 40 References. D. Bajo