Medical Family Therapist Roles

Medical Family Therapists may operated in a variety of roles. The responsibilities of MedFTs change depending on their position. The various positions available may include clinical, leadership, research, policy, education, and supervisory roles. It is important to note that MedFTs often function in a variety of roles simultaneously throughout their career.

Clinical Approaches

Medical Family Therapists (MedFTs) have had a large impact on the reduction of health disparities for underserved populations. Tyndall and colleagues (2014) were able to find numerous studies in which MedFTs worked with diverse patient populations and marginalized populations, which included specific diagnostic illnesses. MedFTs are well equipped to provide culturally sensitive care to individuals, couples, and families experiencing illness, trauma, health, or loss.

Leadership

A background in Systems Theory, the biopsychosocial-spiritual framework and healthcare collaboration make MedFTs ideal leaders and clinical administrators within integrated healthcare systems. Leadership positions currently held by MedFT trained individuals include clinical directors, directors of behavioral medicine, national organization administrators, directors of behavioral sciences, and heads of family medicine programs.

Researcher

Medical Family Therapists (MedFTs) bring a systemic, biopsycholsocial-spiritual approach (BPSS) to their research. The scientist-practitioner model has been identified as a valuable approach for MedFT research (Zak-Hunter et al., 2014). There is also an emphasis for MedFTs to address the clinical, operational, and financial worlds of health care through their research (Mendenhall et al., 2014; Peek, 2008) To address this complexity of issues, MedFTs use a variety of research methodologies.

Supervisor

Medical Family Therapy (MedFT) supervisees require specific supervision and training to achieve competency to practice collaborative or integrated care within healthcare settings (Hodgson et al., 2013; Lamson et al., 2014). The goals of MedFT supervision include helping the supervisee adjust to brief behavioral health encounters, understand and apply the medical language, and to navigate the medical world hierarchy and culture (Lamson et al., 2014). To be a qualified MedFT supervisor, one should have spent time shadowing and interacting within healthcare settings, be able to advise and increase supervisee skills in patient-care interactions, and practice not only from a family systems lens, but also from a biopsychosocial-spiritual perspective (Lamson et al., 2014; Edwards & Patterson, 2006).

Policy

Medical Family Therapists (MedFTs) have opportunities to be advocates for healthcare reform and healthcare policy at local, regional, state, and national levels. As systemic thinkers, MedFTs are encouraged to look beyond individual factors and consider the macrolevel influences that impact the health of patients and families (Edwards et al., 2014).