Original scientific paper

Family medicine - A safe future

Snježana Ivković ; Dom zdravlja zagrebačke županije
Venija Cerovečki ; Medicinski fakultet Sveučilišta u Zagrebu, Katedra za obiteljsku medicinu
Zlata Ožvačić ; Medicinski fakultet Sveučilišta u Zagrebu, Katedra za obiteljsku medicinu
Dragan Soldo ; Medicinski fakultet Sveučilišta u Zagrebu, katedra za obiteljsku medicinu
Nataša Buljan ; Privatna specijalistička ordinacija obiteljske medicine
Goranka Petriček ; Medicinski fakultet Sveučilišta u zagrebu, Katedra za obiteljsku medicinu
Lucija Murgić ; Medicinski fakultet Sveučilišta u Zagrebu, Katedra za obiteljsku medicinu
Zdenko Sonicki ; Medicinski fakultet Sveučilišta u Zagrebu, Katedra za medicinsku statistiku,epidemiologiju i medicinsku informatiku
Milica Katić ; Medicinski fakultet Sveučilišta u Zagrebu, Katedra za obiteljsku medicinu

Abstract

Aim: To investigate patients’ attitudes regarding family medicine, their opinion on the contribution of family medicine to the quality of health care and their perception of family medicine advantages.
Participants and methods: A cross-sectional questionnaire-based study was performed in four urban and four rural family practices. Patients aged 18 years or more provided data on their age, sex, educational level and proportion of family members who were in care of the same family doctor. Patients expressed their opinion on the contribution of family medicine to the quality of health care and their perception of family medicine advantages.
Results: Out of 960 patients, 428 (44.58%) men and 532 (55.42%) women, 494 (51.46%) patients were registered in urban and 466 (48.54%) in rural family practices. Most of the patients (N = 382, 39.79%) were aged 60 years or more. The majority of patients in rural practices had finished primary school (N = 277, 56.07%) and the majority of patients in urban practices had finished secondary school (N = 302, 64.81%).
A significantly higher proportion of patients in rural practices reported having one family doctor taking careof all family members (N = 145, 29.35%) (χ 2 = 23.27, p < 0.001), 736 (76.67%) patients fully agreed that family medicine contributes to higher care quality. For 510 (53.13%) patients, the main advantage of family medicine was knowing the patient.
Conclusion: According to patients’ opinion, family medicine provides holistic, continuing care to patients and contributes to a higher quality of health care.

Keywords

family medicine; family doctor; quality of care

Hrčak ID:

70293

URI

https://hrcak.srce.hr/70293

Publication date:

6.7.2011.

Article data in other languages: croatian

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