Descriptive study of claims in primary care during the year 2022 in a health area of Spain.

Abstract

Background: Primary Health Care (PHC) plays a pivotal role in the healthcare system as the initial point of contact for users and patients. In the healthcare area, claims are presented and managed through a web app. It also enables systematic analysis of emerging information to drive continuous improvement. The present objective was to describe the complaints filed at PHC in 2022.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted, examining complaints filed by patients in 2022. For inclusion of the complaints, it was established that it had to do with the treatment received by healthcare personnel and that was presented through the web app. Complaint texts signaling dissatisfaction with the information received were subjected to qualitative coding.

Results: The study involved 326 users who submitted a total of 358 complaints specifically related to treatment and information. The average age of the participants was 33.5 ± 16.2 years, and the majority were women (72.4 %, n = 236). In 2022, the Cumulative Incidence (CCI) was 55.2 complaints per 100,000 healthcare act and the Complaint Incidence Rate (CIR), defined as the number of complaints/1000 users/year, was 6.5. The prevalence of complaints related to information was 12.4 %. The main reasons for complaints about information were issues related to communication with the patient (79 %), followed by the patient's disagreement with the techniques applied by healthcare staff (17 %).

Conclusions: Results show us the fundamental characteristics of complaints in primary care with respect to the information received by health professionals, not allowing us to know where the authors can influence through interventions or training actions to try to improve.