[The frequency of illnesses attended and its relationship with the maintenance of the family doctor's skill].
OBJECTIVE
To describe the incidence of health problems dealt with less often in primary care medical consultations, and to discuss its relationship with the maintenance of professional skill, with in-work training and case-load planning.


METHODS
A prospective observational study based on a year's recording.


METHODS
The clinics of 44 primary care doctors from 10 autonomous communities.


METHODS
418,98 people were attended.


METHODS
The unit of analysis was the care episode. The incidence per 1000 people attended, in total and by demographic mean, of the less common health complaints (incidence less than 1/1000) was calculated.


RESULTS
Primary care doctors attended at greater frequency than 1/1000 all diseases of eyes, ears, mastoids (except salpingitis) and menstrual disorders codifiable under the classification CIPSAP; almost all the respiratory, skin and locomotive diseases, and more than half of the circulatory, genito-urinary, digestive and endocrine-metabolic diseases. Incidence was less than 1/1000 in all the malignant tumours and contagious diseases, except viral hepatitis and tuberculosis in the urban setting.


CONCLUSIONS
Primary care doctors do not often attend certain serious diseases, which are nevertheless present in many differential diagnoses (malignant tumours). This should be borne in mind in the training strategies aimed at maintaining doctor's diagnostic skills.
Palomo
L
L
Centro de Salud, Coria, Cáceres. luis.palomo@hspa.es
Gérvas
J
J
García-Olmos
L
L
D002983:Clinical Competence; D005194:Family Practice / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D011446:Prospective Studies; D013030:Spain; D016526:Workload
La frecuencia de las enfermedades atendidas y su relación con el mantenimiento de la destreza del médico de familia.