Association between the qualification in Family and Community Medicine and the community orientation of the Family Health Strategy

Abstract: Introduction: In studies evaluating the attributes of Primary Health Care, Community Orientation has shown weak performance among users. In particular, questions remain over whether professional qualification in Family Practice (FP) helps optimize this performance. Purpose: verify the association between professional qualification in FP and the degree of Community Orientation from the perspective of medical professionals working in the Family Health Strategy of Belo Horizonte. Methods: This census study was applied to doctors in Belo Horizonte. Sociodemographic variables related to academic training and occupational status were obtained through a questionnaire. The PCATool-Brasil was used to measure the performance of this attribute. Result: The comparison between the performance of the Community Orientation score and independent variables was made using the chi-square test, with Fischer correction. The average score was 7.9 (SD ± 1.2). No independent variable was associated with a satisfactory level of Community Orientation. There was a correlation between time of completion of medical residency in FP and a high Community Orientation score. Conclusion: Qualification in FP does not itself determine a high degree of Community Orientation. Longer training in FP medical residency was correlated to better performance of this derived attribute.