Family practice in Turkey: Observations from a pilot implementation.

Area of Science:

• Primary Health Care Research
• Health Services Research
• General Practice Reform

Background:

• Turkey initiated a pilot family practice reform in 2005.
• Understanding practice patterns during this transition is crucial for evaluating healthcare system changes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe prevalent practice patterns and clinic characteristics of Turkish General Practitioners (GPs) during the family practice reform transition.
• To assess patient access and GP satisfaction within the evolving primary care landscape.

Main Methods:

• A cross-sectional descriptive study design was employed.
• An online survey was administered to Turkish GPs working in primary care during the reform period.
• Descriptive statistics were used to analyze clinic and GP characteristics.

Main Results:

• Patient access to primary health care services in Turkey has improved.
• GPs reported general satisfaction with the reform and relatively short waiting times for consultations.
• Larger patient lists correlated with shorter consultation times and longer patient waits.

Conclusions:

• The transition to family practice has enhanced patient access to healthcare in Turkey.
• GPs are satisfied with their roles, though optimizing patient flow through panel size reduction and appointment systems may be beneficial.