Primary care at Swiss universities - current state and perspective

Abstract

BackgroundThere is increasing evidence that a strong primary care is a cornerstone of an efficient health care system. But Switzerland is facing a shortage of primary care physicians (PCPs). This pushed the Federal Council of Switzerland to introduce a multifaceted political programme to strengthen the position of primary care, including its academic role. The aim of this paper is to provide a comprehensive overview of the situation of academic primary care at the five Swiss universities by the end of year 2012.ResultsAlthough primary care teaching activities have a long tradition at the five Swiss universities with activities starting in the beginning of the 1980ies; the academic institutes of primary care were only established in recent years (2005 – 2009). Only one of them has an established chair. Human and financial resources vary substantially. At all universities a broad variety of courses and lectures are offered, including teaching in private primary care practices with 1331 PCPs involved. Regarding research, differences among the institutes are tremendous, mainly caused by entirely different human resources and skills.ConclusionSo far, the activities of the existing institutes at the Swiss Universities are mainly focused on teaching. However, for a complete academic institutionalization as well as an increased acceptance and attractiveness, more research activities are needed. In addition to an adequate basic funding of research positions, competitive research grants have to be created to establish a specialty-specific research culture.

Internists‘ career choice towards primary care: a cross-sectional survey

“…Besides attractive career paths with structured residency programs, role models as well as support by chief and academic staff are important, which can be supported by academic institutes of primary care and mentoring programs. [28–30] If these measures fail, the number of future PCPs might decline even more despite the increasing number of certified general internists [31]. …”

Impact of the primary care curriculum and its teaching formats on medical students’ perception of primary care: a cross-sectional study

“…Thus we cannot draw conclusions on elements that students may have encountered during their final study year. Our data were collected before the launch of the primary care education reform currently under way in Switzerland [ 17 , 26 ]. Our findings thus reflect students’ views on an evolving curriculum.…”

“…All students follow a 6-year medical course, divided into a 3-year Bachelor’s degree (pre-clinical) and a 3-year Master’s degree (clinical). Academic primary care research and teaching vary between the five medical schools [ 17 ].…”

Optional part-time and longer GP training modules in GP practices associated with more trainees becoming GPs – a cohort study in Switzerland

“…To increase the number of doctors, the state has funded many new places at medical schools (undergraduate programs). Medical schools offer combined lectures (GP and specialist), one-on-one GP tutoring during basic medical education, and mandatory clerkships in primary care [ 23 , 24 ]. Switzerland has also invested heavily in postgraduate training for GPs, which is when young doctors specialize.…”

“…Swiss trainees must also meet other requirements, such as passing a national exam and completing required courses [ 25 ]. The state has raised the profile of primary care at the major universities by opening new Institutes for Primary Cares [ 23 ] that take responsibility for training and providing continuing education courses for GPs [ 8 ]. These Institutes have developed programs and curricula [ 8 , 23 , 26 ].…”