Financial crisis and primary health care in Greece.
Is it time for family medicine?

Lionis, Christos

doi:10.5114/fmpcr/42852

Cited by 2 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 19 publications

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“…This data may highlight a lack of attention to preventative care within the national health care system in Greece and is consistent with previous reports [4, 16, 38]. The financial constraints has meant several areas of international importance in the field of primary care are not on the agendas of GPs in Greece including frailty, chronic disease prevention, self-management, and multi-morbidity [33]. Given the high rates of chronic disease documented in Greece, the delay in diagnosis of chronic diseases such as COPD and lung cancer, and increased focus on preventative medicine and chronic disease-management within the primary care system is recommended [39].…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 89%

“…The financial crisis in Greece necessitates a closer look at proven models, such as the patient-centered model of care, for improving population health, reducing inequalities, and spending. This is a fertile area for GPs and the primary care health care system to invest energy and international experience and collaborations can serve to guide these efforts [33]. …”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Informing primary care reform in Greece: patient expectations and experiences (the QUALICOPC study)

Lionis

Papadakis

Tatsi

et al. 2017

BMC Health Serv Res

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BackgroundPrimary health care is the cornerstone of a high quality health care system. Greece has been actively attempting to reform health care services in order to improve heath outcomes and reduce health care spending. Patient-centered approaches to health care delivery have been increasingly acknowledged for their value informing quality improvement activities. This paper reports the quality of primary health care services in Greece as perceived by patients and aspects of health care delivery that are valued by patients.MethodsThis study was conducted as part of the Quality and Costs of Primary Care in Europe (QUALICOPC) study. A cross-sectional sample of patients were recruited from general practitioner’s offices in Greece and surveyed. Patients rated five features of person-focused primary care: accessibility; continuity and coordination; comprehensiveness; patient activation; and doctor–patient communication. One tenth of the patients ranked the importance of each feature on a scale of one to four, and nine tenths of patients scored their experiences of care received. Comparisons were made between patients with and without chronic disease.ResultsThe sample included 220 general practitioners from both public and private sector. A total of 1964 patients that completed the experience questionnaire and 219 patients that completed the patient values questionnaire were analyzed. Patients overall report a positive experiences with the general practice they visited. Several gaps were identified in particular in terms of wait times for appointments, general practitioner access to patient medical history, delivery of preventative services, patient involvement in decision-making. Patients with chronic disease report better experience than respondents without a chronic condition, however these patient groups report the same values in terms of qualities of the primary care system that are important to them.ConclusionsData gathered may be used to improve the quality of primary health care services in Greece through an increased focus on patient-centered approaches. Our study has identified several gaps as well as factors within the primary care health system that patient’s perceive as most important which can be used to prioritize quality improvement activities, especially within the austerity period. Study findings may also have application to other countries with similar context and infrastructure.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 89%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Informing primary care reform in Greece: patient expectations and experiences (the QUALICOPC study)

Lionis

Papadakis

Tatsi

et al. 2017

BMC Health Serv Res

Self Cite

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show abstract

“…Studies have confirmed that in a health care system where referral to special medical care is performed through a family physician, the health care costs decrease [1,2], and continuous medical supervision is at a high level. Patients who are under the permanent supervision of a primary care physician are less likely to need specialized services or hospitalization [3][4][5].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evaluation of patient referrals to family physicians in Georgia

ვერულავა¹,

Beruashvili²,

Jorbenadze³

et al. 2019

fmpcr

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Background. Adequate utilization of primary care directly reflects the health status of the population. In Georgia (Republic), many patients seek care without a referral by a primary-care provider, and as a result, patient referral rates to family physicians are low. A tendency of patient self-referral behavior may reduce the effectiveness of the healthcare system. Objectives. The purpose of the research is to study the problem of the low rate of patient referrals to family physicians in Georgia. Material and methods. Within the quantitative survey, 20 family physicians and 300 patients were interviewed through a semi-structured questionnaire in different regions of Georgia. Results. Patient referral rates to family physicians are low. 15% (n = 3) of family physicians recognize that patients often address them only for a referral to specialists. Only 5% (n = 3) of family physicians provide preventive consultations on occasion and 50% (n = 10)-in the case of need only. 70% (n = 14) of family physicians think that their remuneration is not adequate for their work and that they work more than they are paid. 35% (n = 105) of respondents in the case of a health problem address both a family physician and a specialist-physician. 42% (n = 126) of patients visit a family physician once a year or do not visit at all, and 47% (n = 141) of patients believe that the family physician institute needs some changes. Conclusion. The result suggests that the low rate of patient referrals to family physicians is due to distrust towards family physicians, which is related to a lack of qualification of physicians and low public awareness of the competence of the family physicians. Due to inadequate reimbursement, family physicians do not have enough motivation to provide adequate service, and the lack of continuous professional education negatively affects their professional development. It is recommended to raise public awareness about primary care, to introduce effective methods for payment of family physicians and to increase the role and affordability of continuous professional education.

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Financial crisis and primary health care in Greece. Is it time for family medicine?

Cited by 2 publications

References 19 publications

Informing primary care reform in Greece: patient expectations and experiences (the QUALICOPC study)

Informing primary care reform in Greece: patient expectations and experiences (the QUALICOPC study)

Evaluation of patient referrals to family physicians in Georgia

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