The EFPC Primary Care Organization Working Group has published a new Position Paper in the official EFPC Journal Primary Health Care Research & Development (PHCR&D):
Title: Organization of Primary Care
Published: 1st September 2022
Authors: Mehmet Akman, Duygu Ayhan Başer, Bugu UsanmaKoban, Tino Marti, Peter Decat, Yann Lefeuvre and Robin Miller
Journal: Primary Health Care Research & Development, Volume 23, 2022, e49. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S1463423622000275
The aim of this position paper is to assist primary care providers, policymakers, and researchers by discussing the current context of primary care organization (PCO) and providing guidance for implementation, development, and evaluation of it in a particular setting. Strong primary care does not develop spontaneously but requires a well-developed organizational planning between levels of care. Primary care-oriented health systems are required to effectively tackle unmet health needs of the population, and efficient PCO is crucial for this aim. The conceptual map of this paper consists of structural and process (PC service organization) domains and is adapted from frameworks described in literature and World Health Organization resources. Evidence that the authors gathered for this paper shows that for establishing a strong PCO, it is crucial to ensure accessible, continuous, person-centered, community-oriented, coordinated, and integrated primary care services provided by competent and socially accountable multiprofessional teams working in a setting where clear policy documents exist, adequate funding is available, and primary care is managed by dedicated units.
