📢 A NEW PAPER IS OUT!

A new paper has been published in Human Resources for Health, providing a critical analysis of the evolution of primary care coverage in Portugal from 2009 to 2023.

✍️ Authored by Eduardo Costa, Joana Paula Pestana, and Pedro Pita Barros, the study decomposes primary care coverage into three key factors:

1. the number of patients enrolled in primary care units (demand-side effect),
2. the number of GPs in full-time equivalents (supply-side effect), and
3. the patient-to-GP ratio, reflecting productivity.

The findings highlight that the increase in patients without an assigned GP is driven by both a reduction in the number of physicians and a decrease in the patient load per doctor. The analysis suggests that improving coverage may require alternative care models, particularly for patients without GP access or those in underserved regions.

🌐 Find out more here: https://human-resources-health.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12960-024-00936-7