Establishing a community-run GP-supervised self-care program for minor illnesses in remote areas in Taiwan: an observational study.
BACKGROUND
We implemented a community-run and GP-supervised self-care for minor illnesses (CGPSC) program in a mountainous area where medical resources for caring for minor illnesses were scarce. In this paper, we reported the residents' experiences and evaluations of this program.


METHODS
The CGPSC program was implemented through easy-access self-care medical spots (ESCMSs) that were set up in the community with following services: non-prescription medications for minor illness (MMI) service, materials for caring for minor injuries, pamphlet on self-care for minor illnesses and minor injuries and medical consultation line. Ten selected residents were trained to run the ESCMSs. All services were supervised by the GP in charge. Nine months after the opening of the ESCMSs, a survey was conducted to evaluate residents' reactions to it.


RESULTS
Eighty per cent (n = 80) of the respondents were aware of the existence of the ESCMSs, and the MMI service was known to most residents and most utilized by them. Compared to respondents who had not used the MMI service (n = 30), those who had used the service (n = 50) considered the ESCMSs more helpful (90.00% versus 76.67%, P < 0.05) and had greater willingness to seek help from the ESCMS in the future (88.00% versus 56.67%, P < 0.01).


CONCLUSIONS
The collaborative efforts of the communities and the medical staff had made the ESCMS a safe, convenient and user-friendly resource to self-care for residents in a rural area. Under the supervision of the GP, trained community residents were able to run the ESCMS smoothly and efficiently.
Department of Family Medicine, Buddhist Tzu Chi General Hospital, Hualien, Taiwan, Republic of China. hundpp@gmail.com
Yun-Ke
YK
Chiu
Yi-Chun
YC
Sun
Ying-Wei
YW
Wang
Jih-I
JI
Yeh
D000328:Adult; D003153:Community Health Services / Q000458:organization & administration* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D003256:Community Participation; D005260:Female; D005392:First Aid; D058006:General Practice; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006297:Health Services Accessibility; D015277:Hotlines; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010174:Pamphlets; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D019035:Rural Health Services / Q000458:organization & administration* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012648:Self Care / Q000379:methods*; D013624:Taiwan