Maternal and child health services provided by the family physicians in a college hospital.

Abstract

Traditionally, maternal and child health services in Taiwan have been offered mainly by the public community health station in each township. There is a trend to integrate these services into the daily practice of physicians in varied medical settings. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the work of providing the maternal and child health services by family physicians practicing at a college hospital. From July 1993 through June 1994, 69 women attending the pre-marital health examination program and 399 family patients who were in need of the maternal and child health services at the Family Medicine Clinic were included in this study. Data related to subjects' backgrounds and office visits were analyzed retrospectively. About 80% of patients attending pre-marital health examinations were satisfied with the scope and process of the services provided. Of 399 family patients contacted by letter and telephone, 322 patients (80.7%) kept the appointments to visit our clinic. Regarding maternal health services, related health education and counselling services were widely provided to female family patients. However, the actual implementation rates of breast examination, Pap smear test and family planning procedures were only 44.5%, 35.7%, and 23.2%, respectively. Factors related to female patients' agreement to do breast examination or Pap smear test included their educational level, age, duration of being enrolled in family care, and the number of family members under the family care. Regarding child health services, vaccinations and periodic health examinations were the main services provided by the family physicians. We concluded that family physicians in our series are capable of providing maternal and child health services to their family patients, and that the actual implementation rates of preventive services could be further promoted through family physicians' more active attitude and recruiting methods.