Background:
Primary health care is the key to achieve universal health coverage and health for all. The role of general practitioner is now more important than ever. Gaps exist between primary care doctors’ needs and available resources. Primary care professionals everywhere in the world are expected to provide basic standard of care and fulfill the unmet needs of the population. “Needs assessment” is essential in order to develop plans that reflect clinical priorities, educational needs, patient-centered care, and effective and efficient utilization of resources.
Materials and Methods:
A blend of qualitative (28 in-depth interviews) and quantitative (315 survey respondents) research helped to identify the educational gaps of general practitioners in the Asia Pacific (APAC) countries. Our in-depth methodology assessed perceived needs in order to inform educational tactics that will engage physicians and drive changes in clinical practice. Barriers to change and best practices were identified so that those barriers may be addressed by the educational strategy.
Results:
Key findings include a strong need for education for chronic conditions such as mental illness, skin problems, diabetes, hypertension, and others. The majority of physicians indicated that they prefer education in all aspects of the disease, from screening and diagnosis to maintenance or referral. Most clinicians prefer live presentations and small groups over Internet-based formats. Sub-analysis based on demographic factors showed little differences in the perceived needs, but significant differences in barriers to best practices.
Conclusion:
“Needs assessment” gives an insight into barriers, interest, and necessity related to education and skills in primary care and the best ways to deliver it.
Half the world's people currently live in rural and remote areas. About 70% of the world's 1.4 billion people who are extremely poor live in rural areas. The problem is that the majority of healthcare providers prefer to serve in urban areas. Only a comprehensive and systematic approach can address these inequities. India, the largest democratic republic in the world, possesses 2.4% of the world's land area and supports 16% of the world's population. According to census 2011, 68.84% of population resides in rural areas. Nearly 86% of all the medical visits in India are made by rural inhabitants with a majority still traveling more than 100 km to avail healthcare facility, of which 70%–80% is born out of pocket landing them in poverty. A country's approach must systematically and simultaneously address legal coverage and rights, health worker shortages, extension of healthcare protection, and quality of care. Only then can equitable access for all be fully achieved. Those living in rural areas have access to health protection and services that meet the criteria of availability, affordability, accessibility, acceptability, and quality. Family medicine as a broad specialty has its role from womb till tomb. Family medicine is defined as a specialty of medicine which is concerned with providing comprehensive care to individuals and families by integrating biomedical, behavioral, and social sciences. As an academic discipline, it includes comprehensive healthcare services, education, and research. A family doctor provides primary and continuing care to the entire family within the communities; addresses physical, psychological, and social problems; and coordinates comprehensive healthcare services with other specialists, as needed. The practitioners in family medicine can play an important role in providing healthcare services to the suffering humanity. The general practitioner's responsibility in Medicare includes management of emergencies, treatment of problems relating to various medical and surgical specialties, care of entire family in its environment, appropriate referrals, and follow-up. He or she is the first-level contact for the patients and his or her family. Family medicine is the ideal solution to growing rural healthcare challenges. This article is a formal position paper of the Academy of Family Physicians of India.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.