[Primary Care frequentation determinants in Catalonia]

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Health Services Research
• Epidemiology

Background:

• Primary Care (PC) faces challenges in budget allocation due to variable patient attendance times.
• Accurate resource distribution is crucial for meeting the healthcare needs of diverse populations.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify key determinants of average annual patient visit time in Catalan Primary Care centers.
• To inform more adequate and needs-based budget allocation models for PC services.

Main Methods:

• Cross-sectional ecological study design.
• Analysis of data from 285 Primary Care health centers (EAP) of the Institut Català de la Salut (ICS) in Catalonia (2016).
• Linear regression models were used to assess the relationship between explanatory variables and average visit time per patient.

Main Results:

• The average annual visit time per patient was 49 minutes, with significant variation (23-87 minutes) across EAPs.
• Factors associated with increased visit time included older population, higher comorbidity, more home care, poorer socioeconomic index, and greater geographical dispersion.
• Increased patient population and a higher proportion of women were associated with decreased visit time.

Conclusions:

• The identified determinants explained 64% of the variability in visit time.
• Budget allocation models for PC should incorporate these factors to align resources with real patient needs.
• Further research is needed to explore professional and organizational factors influencing resource allocation in PC.