Prospecting in Your Practice

Unhealthy lifestyle is increasingly recognized as a major factor in the etiology of several chronic, disabling, and potentially fatal diseases. The fact that patients with high risk lifestyles attend family physicians' offices over a long period of time prior to the onset of disease places an onus on the family physician to be aware of the significance of these lifestyle risks and attempt to change the course of their threatening potential. This article describes some simple ways by which these risks can be detected, placed in priority and presented to the patient. It also offers advice on appropriate health education tactics to provide the patient with the best opportunity to reduce their risks. The choice of the methods used in any individual family physician's office will depend very much on the personality and interest of the physician and staff as well as the receptivity of the community.