Table 2. Primary care problems, by source of care a ,b. Brazilian Longitudinal Study of Aging (ELSI-Brazil), 2015–2016.
| Variable | Traditional public health posts (n = 1,837) | Family Health Strategy (n = 5,356) | Private health plans (n = 2,210) | Total (n = 9,410) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Access | ||||
| Difficult to make an appointment | 0.5283 (0.4741–0.5818) | 0.4031 (0.3736–0.4333) | 0.2642 (0.2343–0.2965) | 0.3926 (0.365–0.4209) |
| Cannot see doctor within 24 hours | 0.6116 (0.5694–0.6522) | 0.492 (0.4487–0.5354) | 0.4486 (0.4058–0.4922) | 0.5043 (0.4715–0.537) |
| Difficult to get information by phone | 0.732 (0.6881–0.7718) | 0.6359 (0.5967–0.6735) | 0.4361 (0.4076–0.4652) | 0.6043 (0.5742–0.6336) |
| Continuity of care | ||||
| Rarely/never see the same doctor | 0.4416 (0.4123–0.4712) | 0.3738 (0.3435–0.4051) | 0.2612 (0.2338–0.2906) | 0.3588 (0.3362–0.3821) |
| Doctor doesn’t know the patient’s medications | 0.2589 (0.2292–0.291) | 0.1801 (0.1609–0.2011) | 0.1116 (0.0925–0.1341) | 0.1777 (0.1633–0.1932) |
| Doctor doesn’t know the patient’s health problems | 0.3002 (0.2718–0.3301) | 0.1798 (0.1559–0.2064) | 0.1208 (0.1002–0.145) | 0.188 (0.1677–0.2102) |
| Provider communication | ||||
| Doctor does not listen well | 0.2542 (0.2217–0.2896) | 0.173 7(0.1551–0.1941) | 0.1099 (0.0909–0.1322) | 0.1732 (0.158–0.1896) |
| Doctor does not explain things well | 0.2732 (0.2439–0.3046) | 0.2056 (0.1842–0.2287) | 0.1296 (0.1061–0.1574) | 0.1996 (0.1838–0.2165) |
| Appointment does not last enough time | 0.3333 (0.3076–0.3601) | 0.2763 (0.2473–0.3073) | 0.1796 (0.1569–0.2049) | 0.2632 (0.2433–0.2841) |
| Coordination and care resolution | ||||
| Doctor does not discuss a specialist visit | 0.573 (0.5356–0.6096) | 0.473 (0.4519–0.4942) | 0.4566 (0.4296–0.4838) | 0.4881 (0.4691–0.5073) |
| Little/no help making a specialist appointment | 0.0517 (0.0377–0.0704) | 0.0326 (0.0237–0.0447) | 0.1742 (0.1402–0.2143) | 0.0718 (0.0598–0.086) |
| Doctor unable to resolve the patient’s health problems | 0.337 (0.3049–0.3706) | 0.2545 (0.2344–0.2758) | 0.1456 (0.1233–0.1712) | 0.2433 (0.2262–0.2613) |
| Mean primary care problems (of 12) | 4.46 (4.18–4.73) | 3.52 (3.30–3.74) | 2.73 (2.54–2.92) | 3.51 (3.33–3.69) |
a Figures are survey-weighted proportions and their respective 95% confidence intervals.
b For all variables, differences across groups are statistically significant (p < 0.001).