Around 90 primary healthcare users will receive an SMS or a letter from the Directorate-General for Health, between today and Thursday, to participate in an international study that will allow the comparison of different healthcare systems.
Coordinated by the DGS and developed by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), PaRIS – International Study on User Results and Experiences with Health Services aims to “gauge the results and experiences of users with health services, more specifically at the level of primary health care», the project's national manager, Natália Pereira, told Lusa today.
According to the nurse from the Department of Health Quality at DGS and focal point for patient safety at the World Health Organization, the study is being carried out in several other countries and will allow the comparison of different health systems.
Natália Pereira said that on August 16, the main survey was launched among primary healthcare providers in a total of 145 functional units (Family Health Units model A, model B and personalized healthcare unit) and today it is launched the main survey of users, selected at random and who must be over 45 years old and have had contact with the health center in the last six months.
The users who will receive the invitation to participate in the study belong to the functional units that have already completed the survey, said the person in charge, explaining that the SMS they will receive will have a 'link' to the questionnaire which consists of questions relating to the experience lived in the study. contact with the health center and the results most valued by users, being confidential and anonymous.
«There is no possibility of establishing interconnection between the user and, for example, the family doctor or their health unit», assured Natália Pereira, stressing that «the user can and should participate in this study because, in fact, it is a way of giving users a voice” and improving health services.
According to Natália Pereira, the collection of this data will have to be done by the end of October 2023, and then there will be a preliminary report by the end of the year, because a meeting will take place in January 2024 to share and disseminate this data.
The project manager called on users to participate in the study, which has as its “main objective” to encourage health systems to become more people-centered.
«This is our great motto: healthcare that is increasingly people-centered. And so we want to listen to users», said Natália Pereira, highlighting that the objective will be to adopt measures to improve the health system.
An OECD initiative, PaRIS aims to monitor the state of the population's relationship with the health system, through international comparison with around 20 countries participating in the study, identifying areas for improvement and strategies that allow progress in the quality and safety of care provided to Portuguese population.
The implementation of PaRIS is ensured not only by the DGS, but also by the Central Administration of the Health System, the Regional Health Administrations, the Shared Services of the Ministry of Health (SPMS) and the National School of Public Health, with there also being a group consultancy with representatives of professional orders, associations, leagues and personalities of recognized scientific merit in the area.
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