The Work Competence of General Practitioners Working in Shanghai’s Community Health Services: A Cross-Sectional Study based on Self-assessment

Background: The aim of the study was to investigate the work competence of GPs in community health services(CHS) in Shanghai, China. Methods: A questionnaire was designed on the basis of a previous capacity evaluation indicator system. We adopted a stratified and proportional cluster sampling method in this self-assessment and cross-sectional study. We collected data on GPs demographic variables and work competence which was separated as patient care ability, teaching ability, communication skill and coordination ability, using the questionnaire. Results: A total of 2954 GPs were sampled from 116 CHS in Shanghai. The median score of patient care ability, teaching ability, communication skill and coordination ability were 80[70-88.75], 76[60-80] and 80[70-85] on a scale of 100, respectively. GPs who were 30-39 years old, worked in urban CHS, and participated in GP trainer’s training or had teaching experience got higher scores in patient care ability. GPs who worked for 5-20 years in CHS, worked in training CHSs and participated in GP trainer’s training program had higher scores in teaching ability. As for communication skill and coordination ability, GPs who were older than 30-39 years old and with a senior professional title, worked in training CHS, participated in GP trainer’s training and had teaching experiences in CHS got higher scores. Conclusions: The work competence of GPs in Shanghai’s CHS largely meets the requirements of daily practice, but there is still great improving space in the aspect of teaching ability.