Multiprofile primary health care teams in Catalonia, Spain: A population-based effective model of services delivery (2018)

Multiprofile teams provide primary health care services in Spain. This model of care was designed in the 1985 Primary Health Care Reform Act which was inspired by the principles of the WHO Declaration of Alma-Ata. Implemented and operationalized across the autonomous communities at different paces, the reform aimed to increase the responsive capacity of primary care services, ensure equal access and improve the efficiency of the entire health system by expanding the scope of services provided by new multidisciplinary teams. In Catalonia, a new generation of family doctors – recently trained in the new medical specialty of family and community medicine established in 1978 – pioneered the reform process with the support of the Catalan Scientific Society of Family Medicine. Although the benefits of the new model outweighed its costs, completing the reform process took 22 years. Since 1985, new primary care models have emerged capitalizing on the role of nurses and information systems, as well as improving integration with community hospitals and other health services providers.