[Criteria how to choose adequate methodology and relevant variables for assessment of quality of primary healthcare].

INTRODUCTION Research of satisfaction of patients in the area of primary health care (PHC) and especially criteria how to choose best methodology and the relevant variables guided to the situation where activities were focused on description of the basic structure and processes of health care rather than on identification of needs for services and on result based assessment and satisfaction of patients with provided service. To give advantage to any of methodologies is inexplicable problem and depend of factors beyond of health service control. PURPOSE Aim of this paper is to review existing measurements of healthcare for ones who intend to use measurements of quality of healthcare for clinical and research purposes and to recommend criteria how to choose adequate methodology and relevant variables for assessment of quality of primary healthcare. METHODOLOGY For our study we used experience of the Cathedra for Medical Informatics, Medical faculty, University of Sarajevo with emphasis on research of quality of PHC. We selected over 3,000 users of PHC (patients-adults) in PHC units in ten cantons of Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. RESULTS Statistically significant results we got when we crossed general attitude of patients about quality of healthcare with the following variables: place where patient receive healthcare, consultation with patients about patients' rights and life styles. We have not got statistically significant results when we crossed the following variables with general attitude of patients: distance from place of living to place where patients get healthcare, examination schedule in the units of PHC, continuity of healthcare, organization of field service and possibility to choose physician or nurse. CONCLUSION Very often researchers create their own methods of measurement instead to carry out systematic review of existing ones to enable them to find appropriate one. In this paper we recommended guidelines for finding the most appropriate methods of health measurement using experience of the Cathedra for Medical Informatics, Medical faculty in Sarajevo.