Knowledge, attitude, and practice of patients, visiting a private primary level health care facility towards family physicians

AIM AND OBJECTIVE: To study the knowledge, perception, attitude, and practice of patients visiting a private primary health centre towards family physicians. METHODOLOGY: A cross-sectional questionnaire-based study was planned. RESULTS: A total of 272 patients visiting the health centre were included in the study. KNOWLEDGE: Above 90% of the patients felt confident in the capabilities of family physicians in managing all kinds of health problems and the time/cost-effectiveness of this speciality. Timely referral and holistic care were other areas that boosted their confidence on family physicians. 96.7% knew that family physicians are trained specialists. ATTITUDE: Although only 50% of the study participants were already seeking the services of a family physician, 88% of them felt that a family physician would be their primary point of contact in their health care needs. PRACTICE: The positive attitude, knowledge, and perception towards family medicine were not reflected on their treatment seeking practice in areas of care, such as childcare (66.2%) and pregnancy (81.6%), where they preferred the services of a specialist. Also, for diabetes (52%) and chest pain (66%) related issues, the patients favoured a specialist’s care over that of a family physician. CONCLUSION: Patients visiting our primary health centre had good knowledge and positive perception about the family physicians. Preference for specialists over family physicians was seen for conditions such as chest pain, diabetes care, child care, and obstetrics issues.