title: Higher quality primary care is associated with good self-rated health status.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To ascertain the association between primary care quality and self-rated health status.
  
  
  METHODS
  A cross-sectional study using the Korean primary care assessment tool (K-PCAT). The K-PCAT is a validated tool based on the definition of primary care in Korea, consisting of 5 domains and 21 items providing a total primary care quality score. Data were collected from patients of family physicians working at nine private clinics as their usual source of care. The main outcome measure was self-rated health status.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Data were analyzed for 531 study participants. Bivariate analysis of socio-demographic variables of patients, who participated in this study as primary care quality assessors, revealed that those with high self-ratings of health tended to have higher household incomes and more frequent exercise. Those with high self-ratings of health had higher total primary care scores than those with low self-ratings of health, as determined through bivariate analysis (P < 0.01). After being adjusted for age, sex, the number of diseases being treated, education years, household income, smoking status, alcohol intake and the frequency of regular exercise, the total primary care score was found to be positively associated with good health.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Primary care quality, as assessed by the K-PCAT, was positively associated with good self-rated health status.
authors.affiliation: Department of Family Medicine, Ilsan Hospital, Dongguk University College of Medicine, Goyang, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Nak Jin
authors.initials: NJ
authors.lastname: Sung
authors.forename: Jeffrey F
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Markuns
authors.forename: Ki Heum
authors.initials: KH
authors.lastname: Park
authors.forename: Kyoungwoo
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Heeyoung
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Jae Ho
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Lee
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D007182:Income; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008962:Models, Theoretical; D009043:Motor Activity; D011320:Primary Health Care / Q000592:standards*; D011787:Quality of Health Care; D056910:Republic of Korea; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Continuity of care; doctor–patient relationship; health promotion; primary care; quality of care.