Health Care Integration and Coordination with Emphasis on Mental Health, but Not for Medical Marijuana

Abstract

Care coordination and behavioral health care integration are the subject of 4 of this month's articles. Patients with significant illness report that care coordination provides great challenges to them, and they expect family physicians to assist with the referrals and communication between the doctors. Patients' primary care providers were usually not the prescribers of patients' medical marijuana and were often unaware of its use, indicating lack of health care integration and coordination. Two articles provide insight into medication adherence. Also, how are family physicians addressing patient engagement at the practice level? Clinical topics in this issue include the following: specific exercises were not the answer to restless legs; epidural anesthesia may be associated with fewer, not more, vaginal lacerations; and fecal incontinence is less discussed but not necessarily less problematic than urinary incontinence. On the popular culture front, opioid mentions in top 100 songs are increasing. Lastly, what does it mean for the field of family medicine that some of us choose to become hospitalists?