Table 8 Rustenburg statement of consensus on family medicine in Africa [11]

1. “In an African context, the family physician is a clinical leader and consultant in the primary health care team, ensuring primary, continuing, comprehensive, holistic and personalised care of high quality to individuals, families and communities.

2. The family physician in Africa operates according to the principles of comprehensive person-centred care, with a family and community orientation, responding to undifferentiated illness and acting as a consultant to the primary health care team.

3. The role of the family physician in Africa involves a comprehensive set of skills adapted to the circumstances, local needs, available resources, facilities and the competency and limitations of the practitioner.

4. The family physician has a commitment and responsibility to a defined population to whom they are accountable through its representative structure.

5. The family physician's role requires close collaboration and teamwork with other members of the primary health care team, especially in the light of specific challenges, such as the insufficient numbers of health care workers.

6. The limited human, financial and material resources which exist necessitate skills appropriate to the situation. The family physician’s responsibility as consultant and gate-keeper encompasses the economic, effective and efficient use of available resources (human, financial and informational), as well as the ability to prioritize.

7. The family physician is also a life-long scholar, which includes a commitment to life-long learning, research and audit, and a responsibility for the continuing education of the primary health care team and community.

8. The family physician is an interdisciplinary player, with a pivotal role in the coordination of the primary health care team, including leadership in clinical governance and patient referrals.

9. Cultural competency in relation to language, gender, traditions and religious beliefs: is an essential attribute.

10. The family physician must play an advocacy role, both through daily example and through their institutions, by actively identifying with, and advocating for, the poor and marginalized.

11. The family physician should generate social and managerial accountability and transparency in terms of effective and efficient health care delivery.

12. Family physicians have a responsibility for health resource and service management based on their clinical understanding and should have direct access to District Health Management Teams.

13. The family physician may focus on various areas of special interest at different times in their career. At the same time, they must remain competent across a broad scope of practice as a generalist.” [11]