A Study on Assessing and Developing a Response to the Primary Care Needs of the Community Residing Around Shalom Family Medicine and Day Care Centre (SFDC) At Christian Medical College (CMC), Vellore

Primary health care is a whole-of-society approach to health that aims at ensuring the highest possible level of health and well-being and their equitable distribution by focusing on people’s needs and as early as possible along the continuum from health promotion and disease prevention to treatment, rehabilitation and palliative care, and as close as feasible to people’s everyday environment.” is the Vision of World Health Organization for primary health care in the 21st century: Primary health care, when well-structured and staffed with motivated, well- educated, and continuously trained medical practitioners, resolves the majority of health problems experienced by the community and reduces the pressure on secondary and tertiary healthcare institutions. The study entitled “To assess and develop a response to the primary health care needs of the community residing around Shalom Family Medicine and Day Care Centre (SFDC)at Christian Medical College, Vellore.” The objectives of the research were to study the current healthcare services provided by Shalom Family medicine and Daycare Centre, determine the expectations of the patients using SFDC and community living near SFDC concerning the services offered and the extent to which their needs were met and to make appropriate suggestions to address the service gaps identified for enhancement of SFDC services. The study was carried out from May to September 2021. A descriptive research design was used to study 100 respondents from members of the community residing around SFDC and 100 respondents who avail the services of the SFDC clinic. A structured questionnaire was developed based on WHO declarations and articles regarding primary health care. Modified Kuppuswamy scale was adopted in the questionnaire for classification of Socio-economic status of the respondents The results of the study highlight that, though the Shalom Family medicine and Daycare Centre is nearby homes of the community, people prefer the government primary health center and other nearby private Health clinics and hospitals due to the lack of specialties, cost of the treatment and limited working hours of the clinic Around 55 % of the people are aware of shalom family medicine in the surrounding area, but only 52% of the people choose SFDC as the preferred healthcare center for them or their families. Based on this study, it has been concluded that the various primary healthcare needs of the community are met by the Shalom family medicine and Daycare center. But the clinic has to be promoted in the nearby areas, and its services have to be expanded, increasing the number of patients opting for Shalom family medicine and daycare center as the primary healthcare center for their family.