Hacia un nuevo modelo de atención primaria en salud: evaluación del proyecto de salud familiar Ancora U.C.

In this study a cross sectional evaluation was conducted to compare clinical effectiveness, user satisfaction and economic effects of a university based family health care network, Ancora UC, with the municipal primary care network from the counties where the Ancora centers are located. The study shows that Ancora UC obtained higher clinical effectiveness expressed in reductions of 20% of referrals to secondary care, 70% in emergency room visits and 30% of hospitalizations compared to the municipal health care network. The differences remained significant after adjusting for socio-demographic variables. The outcomes are associated with a high level of user’s satisfaction and represented an estimated saving of 1,690 millions of Chilean pesos in 2010. The results are consistent with the ones observed in similar experiences in Canada, England and Brazil and highlight the positive impact of an integral primary care model.