[Primary care training during internship - quality and organization.]

In 2000 a new regulation regarding medical licensure came into effect requiring a three-month rotation at a primary health care centre during internship. The aim of this study was to explore the interns' attitude towards this experience, and particularly to find out how well the training was organized, the supervision they received, and the quality of teaching at the health care centres.

In 2002 a survey was mailed to all interns (a total of 65) who had completed training at primary health care centres during 2000 and 2001. Five interns were unreachable and we obtained 38 replies (63% of those reachable, and 58% of target population).

The interns received clinical training in providing comprehensive services as well as formal teaching. If an intern needed assistance with patient care he/she was almost always able to obtain help within 10 minutes. In 92% of cases, experienced doctors were available for the interns to consult with during off-duty emergencies.

Our results indicate that the current method of teaching interns in the primary health care setting is of good quality, the variety of work experience is positive, and the work environment is satisfactory. Overall the interns expressed satisfaction with their training. A few areas were identified as needing improvement. Further research is needed to assess whether the interns achieve their aims with regard to knowledge, attitude and skills in family practice.