Profiles
Brian Hennen, MD, of London, Ont., is chairman of the College's
Committee on Educational Objectives, which since 1971 has been working
on the monumental task of writing Books I and II, dealing with the
College's Educational Objectives.
Born in Hamilton, Ont., Dr. Hennen received his MD degree from
Queen's University in 1962 and practiced family medicine at the Harvie
Clinic in Orillia, Ont., until 1965. Following two years of postgraduate
work at Kingston General Hospital, he took a position as teaching fellow
in family medicine at McMaster University in Hamilton. He then obtained
an MA degree in Educational Psychology from Michigan State University
in 1969. In that same year, he also became one of the first Certificants of
the College of Family Physicians of Canada.
Since 1970, Dr. Hennen has been assistant professor in the Department
of Family and Community Medicine at the University of Western Ontario.
Brian Hennen, MD He has also chaired several academic policy-making committees at the
university, the Medical Education Committee in 1971 and the Health
Sciences Education Committee in 1972.
In addition to his academic duties, he is involved in several committees
of St. Joseph's Hospital and is a member of the City of London's Family
and Children's Services' Policy Committee.
Commenting on family medicine in general, Dr. Hennen feels that the
family physician must justify his new title. "I believe the challenge facing
family practice today is to show unequivocally the degree to which the
efficiency and effectiveness of care for a family is improved when all
primary care for a family is given under the care of one doctor - the
family doctor", says Dr. Hennen.
He also suggests that the family physician's identity be clarified, so that
his confreres will know what to expect of him: "A major area of concern
for me is the degree of communication we have with our consultant
colleagues. We can be critical of their bad habits of delayed consultation
notes, cross referrals, overinvestigation etc. only if we are equally critical
of our own performance. We do not yet present a uniform method of
health care. For example, a urologist recently indicated to me that 80
percent of referrals to him were on the basis of a urological symptom
alone for which virtually no investigation had been undertaken. On these
patients, he considered himself to be practicing primary care urology".
He concludes, "I do not advocate that all family doctors should be
prototypes but there should be some things which patients, consultants
and other health professionals can expect of every family doctor. The
educational objectives of the College soon to be available in Book II,
attempt to identify some of these things".
Dr. Hennen is married and has three children, two boys and a girl.
CANADIAN FAMILY PHYSICIAN/AUGUST, 1973 35