Moving forward after the COVID-19 pandemic : lessons learned in primary care from the multi-country PRICOV-19 study

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has accentuated the indispensable role of primary care. Objectives: Recognising this, the PRICOV-19 study investigated how 5,489 GP practices across 38 countries (Austria, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia,...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Published in:European Journal of General Practice
Main Authors: Willems, Sara, Vanden Bussche, Pierre, Van Poel, Esther, Collins, Claire, Klemenc-Ketis, Zalika
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: 2024
Subjects:
Medicine and Health Sciences
Social Sciences
Family Practice
Primary care
COVID-19
quality of care
future-proofing
health
resilience
service capacity
General Practice
infectious diseases
Family Medicine
multi-country
Iceland
Online Access:https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/01HSJMN80Z11KFD1WJ17QEPK91
http://hdl.handle.net/1854/LU-01HSJMN80Z11KFD1WJ17QEPK91
https://doi.org/10.1080/13814788.2024.2328716
https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/01HSJMN80Z11KFD1WJ17QEPK91/file/01HSJMV76N0N63XW3E3JG3Q61M
Description
Summary:Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has accentuated the indispensable role of primary care. Objectives: Recognising this, the PRICOV-19 study investigated how 5,489 GP practices across 38 countries (Austria, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Kosovo*, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Republic of Moldova, Netherlands, North Macedonia, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, and United Kingdom) adapted their care delivery during the pandemic. Methods: Based on a series of discussions on the results of the PRICOV-19 study group, eight recommendations to enhance primary care’s preparedness for future crises were formulated and endorsed by EQuiP and WONCA Europe. Results: The recommendations underscore the importance of recognising and sustaining the substantial strides made in patient safety within GP practices during the pandemic in current daily practices; acknowledging and supporting the pivotal role of GP practices in addressing health inequalities during crises; adopting interprofessional care models to enhance practices’ resilience and adaptability to change; supporting training practices; creating healthy working environments; investing in infrastructure that supports adequate and safe care; and increasing funding for research on patient safety and primary care quality to inform evidence-based health policies and fostering international knowledge exchange among healthcare professionals and policymakers. Conclusion: Policymakers, primary care associations, and the broader healthcare system are urged to collaboratively take responsibility and increase support for GP practices to enhance their resilience, adaptability, and capacity to deliver safe and equitable healthcare during future crises.

Similar Items