[More Doctors Program: characterizing the quality of primary care by the type of medical provision]

This study characterized the quality of primary care based on the responses of professionals and users, focusing on the type of physician - whether or not they were included in the More Doctors Program (PMM, acronym in Portuguese). A cross-sectional study was conducted applying the Quality and Strengthening of Primary Care Questionnaire to 149 physicians and 795 users in basic health units in Pernambuco State, Brazil, from February to November 2018. The present study used the concept of PMM provision which foresees the allocation of medical professionals to an areas of social vulnerability. Physicians were divided into three subgroups: non-PMM Brazilians, PMM Brazilians, and PMM Cubans. Mean scores were generated from the perspective of professionals and users through bivariate and multivariate analysis of the physicians' subgroups with sociodemographic, educational and primary care attributes, considering a significance level of 5%. Cuban physicians in the PMM had the highest average scores, especially in the attribute family and community orientation (7.19), followed by the subgroup PMM Brazilians (4.74). Multivariate analysis showed significance for Cuban physicians, females, and professionals with medical residency. Among users, there was a greater association with the quality of primary care in the subgroup of Cuban physicians, except for longitudinality. Results indicate the effectiveness of PMM Cuban physicians in primary care, emphasizing the need to focus on user centrality. The findings reinforce the importance of using accurate and comprehensive assessment instruments in public health management.