The research agenda for general practice/family medicine and primary health care in Europe. Part 3. Results: Person centred care, comprehensive and holistic approach

Abstract

The recently published ‘Research Agenda for General Practice/Family Medicine and Primary Health Care in Europe’ summarizes the evidence relating to the core competencies and characteristics of the Wonca Europe definition of GP/FM, and its implications for general practitioners/family doctors, researchers and policy makers. The European Journal of General Practice publishes a series of articles based on this document. In a first article, background, objectives, and methodology were discussed. In a second article, the results for the two core competencies ‘primary care management’ and ‘community orientation’ were presented. This article reflects on the three core competencies, which deal with person related aspects of GP/FM, i.e. ‘person centred care’, ‘comprehensive approach’ and ‘holistic approach’. Though there is an important body of opinion papers and (non-systematic) reviews, all person related aspects remain poorly defined and researched. Validated instruments to measure these competencies are lacking. Concerning patient-centredness, most research examined patient and doctor preferences and experiences. Studies on comprehensiveness mostly focus on prevention/care of specific diseases. For all domains, there has been limited research conducted on its implications or outcomes.

Key words::

• General practice/family medicine
• research agenda
• person centred care
• comprehensive approach
• holistic approach

Acknowledgments

The authors acknowledge the support and contribution of many organizations and persons. The full text can be read in the first article of this series (3).

Declaration of interest: The authors report having no conflict of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper. All authors are members of EGPRN and active in its committees. Additionally, EHP is member of the Wonca Europe Executive Board. The Research Agenda was supported solely by EGPRN and grants from Wonca Europe.

Full text versions of the research agenda

Electronic versions (pdf) are available from: http://www.egprn.org. Paper versions can be requested from the Coordinating Centre of EGPRN, Mrs Hanny Prick. E-mail: [email protected].