Preventive Health Care for Pre-school Children in Croatia: Ongoing Trends from 1995 to 2012

Abstract

In Croatia, primary health care for pre-school children is organised by paediatricians (PPs) for children in urban and family doctors (FDs) for children in remote areas. This study was undertaken with the aim to determine the trends in preventive activities (general, targeting, and control check-ups and total visits) in both services (FDs, PPs), between 1995 and 2012. The main adapt source was the Croatian Health Service Yearbooks. According to the results, the number and the structure of preventive activities performed by PPs are relatively stable, while those performed by FDs decreased rapidly, primarily because the number of children under the care decreased. It is probable in relations with the regulations to direct the children to PPs and not to the FDs. The average numbers of all preventive activities are under the optimum. There are many similarities between FDs’ and PPs’, some activities were frequently performed by FDs and others by PPs’.