ABSTRACT
Family doctors should really feel very proud of themselves. Patients spend more time in each visit to their family doctor in order to accommodate the extra things that now go on in a normal primary care consultation. BARD offers a realistic and practical insight into family doctor consulting, encompassing areas where other models fear to tread. The BARD family doctor's chosen professional role is in accordance with her personality, beliefs and values. The BARD approach seeks to build on the professional responsibility of family doctors to use all of the consultation tools at their disposal to improve their performance. The role of a family doctor is the set of values, norms and beliefs that motivate her professional behaviour and actions. Actors are particularly good at working out a role, and at translating that role into elements of behaviour, using techniques that have stood the test of time. The chapter presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in this book.
