[Undergraduate training in primary health care: 6 years' experience at the University of Alicante].
OBJECTIVE
To assess the opinion of medical students on the teaching offered in the Primary Care context (TOPC).


METHODS
Observational and crossover study. The assessment used an opinion questionnaire.


METHODS
296 sixth-year medical students between 1987 and 1992.


METHODS
The TOPC consisted of four weeks stay in a Health Centre with an eminently practical programme. However this also included hour-long theoretical seminars on the most important Primary Care questions and the student's completion of a research project related to Primary Care.


RESULTS
The students expressed satisfaction with the TOPC (average score of 4 out of 5). Moreover this satisfaction increased over the five years (from 3.7 to 4.6, p = 0.0001). They believed the TOPC to be useful (3.6 to 4.7, p = 0.0001) and relevant to their future professional activity (3.1 to 4.6, p = 0.0001). They thought that the tutors were very competent (4 out of 5, with no significant variation) and the Health Centres' teaching facilities suitable (3.8 to 4, with no significant variation). Finally, they considered that TOPC should become a compulsory undergraduate subject (3.9 out of 5).


CONCLUSIONS
Medical students give a positive rating to the Primary Care teaching offered and believe it should be integrated into the Medicine syllabus as a compulsory subject.
Unidad Docente de Medicina Familiar y Comunitaria, Ciudad-Jardín, Villajoyosa, Novelda, Alicante.
F
F
Quirce
V F
VF
Gil
J
J
Uris
D
D
Orozco
M T
MT
Ruiz
L
L
Jiménez
M
M
Hernández
J L
JL
Ferrández
J
J
Merino
D000328:Adult; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004504:Education, Medical, Undergraduate; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011320:Primary Health Care; D013337:Students, Medical; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
Formación de pregrado en atención primaria: seis años de experiencia en la Universidad de Alicante.