Abstract
BackgroundThere is a need for evidence that residency training in family medicine can benefit the care of patients in primary care in low- and middle-income countries. We tested the hypothesis that two years of residency training in family medicine enables doctors to better detect chronic health conditions while requesting fewer laboratory tests and providing more follow-up visits.MethodsWe performed a retrospective longitudinal observational analysis of medical consultations from 2013 to 2018 in primary care in Rio de Janeiro, comparing doctors without residency training in family medicine (Generalists) versus family physicians (FPs). Multivariate multilevel binomial regression models estimated the risks of patients being diagnosed for a list of 31 chronic health conditions, having a follow-up visit for these conditions, and having laboratory tests ordered from a list of 30 exams.Results569.289 patients had 2.908.864 medical consultations performed by 734 generalists and 231 FPs. Patients seen by FPs were at a higher risk of being detected for most of the chronic health conditions, at a lower risk of having any of the 30 laboratory tests requested, and at a higher risk of having a follow-up visit in primary care.ConclusionsResidency training in family medicine can make physicians more skilled to work in primary care. Policymakers must prioritize investments in capacity building of healthcare workforce to make primary care truly comprehensive.
Highlights
Capacity building of human resources for primary health care (PHC) is a sensitive issue in global health [1]
Leaders in Family medicine (FM) and primary care providers routinely advocate for improvements [13], showing that strong PHC leads to better performance on health indicators while
The study was conducted in accordance with the 466/12 resolution from the Brazilian National Health Council [21] and the Declaration of Helsinki and it was approved by the Rio de Janeiro Municipal Health Department (RJ-MHD) research ethics board
Summary
Capacity building of human resources for primary health care (PHC) is a sensitive issue in global health [1]. For many low- and middle-income countries [2] (LMIC) the inability to train health care providers is a critical structural problem [3, 4]. Physicians (FPs) are trained to provide comprehensive patient-centered care [8, 9], managing the most prevalent health conditions in the community, and making good use of the resources available [10, 11]. Leaders in FM and primary care providers routinely advocate for improvements [13], showing that strong PHC leads to better performance on health indicators while. There is a need for evidence that residency training in family medicine can benefit the care of patients in primary care in low- and middle-income countries. We tested the hypothesis that two years of residency training in family medicine enables doctors to better detect chronic health conditions while requesting fewer laboratory tests and providing more follow-up visits
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