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National Keynote

Ferdinando Petrazzuoli, MD, PhD, ORCID (0000-0003-1058-492X)

A dedicated family physician with over 40 years of experience serving a rural community in Southern Italy. A prominent leader in European primary care research and rural medicine, currently serving as President of EURIPA.

Education

  • PhD in Clinical Sciences, Center for Primary Health Care Research, Lund University, Sweden (2019) Thesis: Dementia Management in European Primary Care
  • MSc in Primary Care & General Practice, University of Ulster, United Kingdom (2008)

Professional Leadership & Appointments

  • President, European Rural and Isolated Practitioners Association (EURIPA, a WONCA Europe Network) (2024–Present)
  • Executive Board Member-at-Large, WONCA Europe (Representing EURIPA) (2022–Present)
  • Executive Board Member, WONCA Europe Special Interest Group on Social Prescribing and Community Orientation (2022–Present)
  • Member, WONCA Working Party on Mental Health (2022–Present)
  • Contract Professor, School of Specialization in Community Medicine and Primary Care, University of Naples "Federico II," Italy (2022–Present)
  • Executive Board Member, European General Practice Research Network (EGPRN, a WONCA Europe Network) (2010–2019)

Clinical Experience

  • Family Physician, Southern Italy (1980s–Present) Providing comprehensive primary care in a rural village setting for over 40 years.

PubMED

Continuity of Care: an essential characteristic of the discipline of general practice/family medicine.

According to the WONCA Tree, Continuity of Care is an essential characteristic of the discipline of general practice/family medicine and the cornerstone of high-quality primary health care, traditionally defined by a longitudinal, trusting relationship between a patient and a specific clinician. Its benefits are well-documented: improved clinical outcomes, reduced mortality, lower healthcare costs, and enhanced patient and provider satisfaction. As we navigate the mid-2020s, the "relational" aspect of care is facing unprecedented pressure from global workforce shortages and an increasing policy emphasis on immediate access over long-term stability.

Continuity of Care (CoC) is the cornerstone of high-quality primary health care, traditionally defined by a longitudinal, trusting relationship between a patient and a specific clinician. Its benefits are well-documented: improved clinical outcomes, reduced mortality, lower healthcare costs, and enhanced patient and provider satisfaction. As we navigate the mid-2020s, the "relational" aspect of care is facing unprecedented pressure from global workforce shortages and an increasing policy emphasis on immediate access over long-term stability.

Current Landscape and Challenges Presently, primary care operates in a state of tension. While digital triage and "access-first" models have successfully reduced wait times, they have often inadvertently fragmented the patient’s experience. The "inverse continuity law" persists, where underserved populations with complex multimorbidity—who benefit most from CoC—frequently receive the least. Current measurement tools, such as the Usual Provider of Care (UPC) index, reveal a decline in traditional personal lists, forcing a shift in how we define "continuity" in a modern multidisciplinary environment.

The Technological and Model Shift The current transition is marked by two major innovations: micro teams and Ambient Clinical Intelligence (ACI). Micro teams, small, stable multidisciplinary groups—are replacing the "single doctor" model to maintain relational continuity without individual burnout. Simultaneously, Generative and Multimodal AI are moving from administrative tools to clinical "partners." By 2026, AI-driven systems are beginning to provide the "missing context" for clinicians, synthesizing fragmented data into actionable longitudinal insights, thus strengthening informational continuity even when a patient sees different team members.

Future Directions Looking forward, the future of CoC lies in "Agentic AI" and Value-Based Care. As systems shift toward VBC, incentives will align with the long-term outcomes that CoC naturally produces. AI will transition from reactive data retrieval to proactive "care gap" identification, ensuring that patients do not drift out of pathways. The future primary care model will be a hybrid of "high-tech" and "high-touch," where technology handles the complexity of data and logistics, liberating clinicians to focus on the compassionate, human-centric relationships that remain the heart of medicine.