Community Participation and Intersectoral Collaboration in the First Level of Health Care System before and after the Implementation of Family Physician Program in Tabriz District, North West of Iran

Abstract

​Background and objectives : Implementation of Family physician program in Iran provided appropriate capacity to improve community participation and intersectoral collaboration to public health in recent years. The aim of this study was to determine the family physician impact on community participation and intersectoral collaboration in health care centers in Tabriz University of Medical Sciences. Material and Methods : This cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted in three health centers of three districts in the East Azerbaijan province. Data were extracted from records of two periods of time; before and after implementing family physician program. Data were analyzed using SPSS 16 software. Results : The results showed that the trend of community initiatives and actions in public health field are growing slowly. After implementation of family physician program, the number of agreements for operational and completed collaborations in intersectoral collaboration is increased. Conclusion : In spite of doubling the number of physicians after implementation of family physician program, the trend of community initiatives and intersectoral collaboration in the field of environmental health are slow. As a result, revising the physicians’ roles and performance evaluation checklists in these fields are essential.

Keywords

• public health
• family physician
• intersectoral collaboration
• community participation