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Prevalence of community-oriented primary care knowledge, training, and practice
Shirley K Longlett1, Debra M Phillips, Robert M Wesley
1Department of Family and Community Medicine, Southern Illinois University School of Medicine, Quincy 62301, USA. slonglett@siumed.edu
Family Medicine
|April 2, 2002
Summary
Community-Oriented Primary Care (COPC) training is recommended, but few physicians practice it. While program knowledge of COPC correlates with more activities, physician knowledge does not.
Area of Science:
- Family Medicine Education
- Primary Care Research
- Community Health Initiatives
Background:
- Recent recommendations emphasize resident training in Community-Oriented Primary Care (COPC).
- There is ongoing interest among family medicine educators regarding COPC.
- This study investigates COPC in training and practice, including reported knowledge levels.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine COPC aspects in family medicine training and practice.
- To determine if respondents possess COPC knowledge.
- To compare responses between residency programs and practicing physicians.
Main Methods:
- Surveyed 470 residency directors and 400 randomly selected practicing physicians.
- Assessed COPC curricular and practice experiences.
- Inquired about COPC teaching (programs), practice (physicians), and knowledge (both).
Main Results:
- Response rates were 71.8% for programs and 58.4% for physicians.
- 38.8% of programs teach COPC; only 6.7% of physicians practice it.
- 67% of programs and 19% of physicians reported COPC knowledge. Program knowledge correlated with more COPC activities, but physician knowledge did not.
Conclusions:
- COPC elements are present in both training and practice settings.
- Knowledge of COPC is linked to program-level COPC activities, not physician practice.
- Discrepancies exist in COPC implementation between residency programs and practicing physicians.