Five Years after Implementation of Urban Family Physician Program in Fars Province of Iran: Are People’s Knowledge and Practice Satisfactory?

Abstract

Introduction: Urban family physician program (UFPP) was launched in Fars province of Iran in 2012. We aimed to assess the knowledge and practice of people toward this 5‑year‑old program.

Methods: In this population‑based study, through a multistage random sampling from 6 cities of Fars province, 1350 people older than 18 years were interviewed. For data collection, a questionnaire consisting of sociodemographic characteristics and items about knowledge and
practice toward UFPP was used.

Results: The mean age of the interviewees was 42.4 ± 14.2 years; male (674; 49.9%)‑to‑female (651; 48.2%) ratio was 1.03. Mean score of knowledge was 4.2 ± 1.7 (out of 14), while 961 (71.1%) had <50% of the desirable knowledge. Mean score
of practice was 4.4 ± 1.3 (out of 9), while only 443 (32.8%) had a good performance toward this program. Knowledge and practice did not show a signifcant correlation (r = 0.06, P = 0.05). Among cities, the highest and the lowest mean of knowledge belonged to Pasargad (5.6 ± 2.1)
and Lar (3.0 ± 1.0) (P < 0.001), respectively. Pasargad (4.8 ± 1.4) had also the highest level of practice compared to Farashband (3.8 ± 1.4) which had the lowest score (P < 0.001). Multivariable analysis showed that supplemental insurance coverage (odds ratio [OR] = 2.5, %95 confdence
interval [CI]: 1.6–3.9), female gender (OR = 1.9, %95 CI: 1.2–2.9) and higher level of education (OR = 1.7, %95 CI: 1.1–2.5) were the signifcant determinants of knowledge, while practice in those who were not covered by supplemental insurance was better (OR = 1.6, 95% CI: 1.2‑2.5).

Conclusions: After 5 years of implementation of UFPP, knowledge and practice of people toward UFPP are not satisfactory. This fnding calls for a serious revision in some aspects of UFFP.

Keywords: Family physician program, knowledge, practice, urban population