TEACHING THEMES IN PRIMARY HEALTH CARE: A MEDICAL STUDENT VISION

Introduction and purpose It has been already documented the importance of teaching Family and Community Medicine (FCM) and, consequently, the Primary Health Care (PHC) in the bachelor degree program of Medicine, regardless the specialization chosen after graduation. The teaching of FCM and PHC in medical schools is still facing resistance from teachers and students, even knowing that the teaching of FCM tools has the potential to form general physicians who take care of people in a more embracing manner. This study aimed to recognize the student's vision at the end of an elective discipline on the subject. Method The course Themes in Primary Health Care was offered to first-year’s graduation students of medicine from the Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, in 15 weekly theoretical meetings, attended by FCM guests, associated with 15 practical visits to the primary care services in the city of Caruaru. At the end of the activities, the students answered a semi-structured evaluation form regarding the content, method and system of the discipline evaluating, their strengths and weaknesses as far as the suggestions for its improvement. Results and conclusions 94.7% of the students evaluated positively the discipline and would recommend it to a friend. The main strength, indicated by 68.4%, was the presence of FCM guests while the fragilities, mentioned by 47.4%, were the over observational practices. Thereby, it is concluded that the students could perceive the benefits for their professional qualification through the comprehension of the FCM tools.