Assessment of experiences and needs in the implementation of the pilot test for the deployment of territorial teams: health model based on primary care in Bogotá (Colombia), 2021

Abstract

The current district administration of Bogotá (Colombia) seeks to adjust the city's health model, to base it on primary care and offer quality health care. Hence, the District Health Secretariat has carried out, for three months, a pilot test of interdisciplinary territorial teams that provide decisive home care in the most vulnerable areas of the city, to adjust before being deployed throughout the city. The objective of the accompaniment was, among others, to investigate the experiences and perspectives of the actors involved in its planning and execution, to recognize learning and generate recommendations for the adjustment of the equipment's operation. Through a mixed analysis, the information collected was analyzed through focus groups and in-depth interviews with the participants of the exercise, who highlighted the importance of the phases prior to implementation, including adequate induction and training of professionals in the field; prior dissemination of the intervention; engaging the community during the planning, implementation, and monitoring process; the prior assurance of the inputs and knowledge required for care, and the adaptation of the proposed strategies to the territorial context. It is important to point out that this type of health program must have an iterative development process, which requires constant evaluation in the different stages of planning and implementation that lead to improvements in the processes.