Usual Source of Care: concepts, methods and determining factors in the assessment of primary care

This study aimed to systematize, in the national and international scientific literature, the concepts of Usual Source of Care (FUC), the methodological approaches used and the determining factors related to its recognition by users of health services. This is a scoping review. The search was carried out in the Web of Science, Scopus, Science Direct and PubMed databases, without restriction of publication period and languages. Eligibility criteria: original studies that answered the previously defined research question and available in the databases. A total of 632 articles were identified, of which 41 constituted the final sample of this study. This review found that being female, white race/color, higher income, education and having health insurance were associated with the recognition of a FUC. Similar evidence was observed for FUC Primary Health Care (PHC), in addition to studies highlighting other determinants that demonstrate greater vulnerability of individuals. Based on the determining factors, there were inequalities in the recognition of a FUC in most countries, varying in relation to the organizational contexts of the health systems, which shows that the universal systems are favorable for the recognition of a FUC.

KEYWORDS
Primary Health Care; Health services; Health systems