Practice profile of Filipino family physicians nationwide: A web-based survey

ABSTRACT

Background@#The practice of Family Medicine is important in the provision of primary health care. Family physicians (FPs) provide health services both in the public and private settings@*Objective@#To describe the practice profiles and geographic aggregation of Filipino family physicians@*Methods@#This study was a web-based cross-sectional design involving family physicians who are registered in the Philippine Academy of Family Physicians membership database. The questionnaire was semi-structured with 3 consecutive sections consent form, basic demographics, practice profile of family physicians.@*Results@#Overall, 95% (N=1357) of family physicians reported seeing patients in a health facility at least once a week. Thirty percent of physicians are from Luzon (N=426), 28% from the National Capital Region (N=395), 20% from the Visayas region (N=288) and 18% from Mindanao (N=261). There were more FPs who reported mixed-type clinical practice (51%) than those who were exclusively engaged in practice (49%). Involvement in the private sector was common among physicians who are in the clinics (59%), while employment in the public sector was commonly reported among those in mixed-type of practice (42%). Family physicians provide a wide range of clinical services including counselling, vaccinations, simple surgical excision, and palliative services. The average reported outpatient consultation fees of FPs was Php 321 (SD+120) per patient.@*Conclusion@#The practice profile of family physicians includes active clinical practice, employment in either the public or private sector, with a small fraction in solo clinic practice. The range of primary care services offered include management of chronic conditions, counselling, home visits, preventive care such as prenatal care, vaccinations and screening tests like pap smear