[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).

DESIGN

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

PARTICIPANTS

296 sixth-year medical students between 1987 and 1992.

INTERVENTIONS

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.