Attitudes towards interprofessional collaboration of Primary Care teams participating in the ‘More Doctors’ (Mais Médicos) program

Abstract

ABSTRACT Objectives: to compare the attitudes regarding interprofessional collaboration of health professionals that make up the Family Health Strategy teams participating in the ‘More Doctors’ (Mais Médicos) program; and to identify factors associated with attitudes of interprofessional collaboration. Method: a descriptive, transversal and comparative study developed with 63 health professionals who responded to the Jefferson Scale of Attitudes Toward Interprofessional Collaboration. The data were statistically analyzed. Results: the sum of the scale items ranged from 88 to 139 points. The analysis of all the Family Health teams indicated statistically significant differences between the scores of the scale and the professional category and between the scores and the education level, suggesting that nurses and professionals with higher education are more inclined towards collaborative practice. The analysis according to the profile of the doctor - Brazilian, Cuban or foreign exchange doctor - found no statistical differences regarding the physicians’ scores, nor in the scores of the components of teams with different profiles. Conclusion: the profile did not suggest a statistically significant greater or lesser inclination of the doctors or teams toward interprofessional work. This study can support new studies which will contribute to the analysis of inter-professional collaboration and the impact of the Mais Médicos program.