UNamur and Mutualité chrétienne form partnership to better understand shortage of general practitioners in rural areas

This partnership involves the co-financing of an ambitious, multidisciplinary research project conducted by UNamur over a 4-year period. Objectives? To understand the various mechanisms contributing to the disparity in the supply of general practitioners in Wallonia, and to objectify shortages on a local scale.

This project contributes directly to the MC's commitment to improving access to healthcare. By supporting research, the MC helps to orient healthcare policies towards the real needs of territories. The approach is a valuable lever for strengthening an equitable and sustainable healthcare offer, in phase with the values of solidarity carried by the MC.

This project marks the first formal collaboration between UNamur and the MC, bringing UNamur's research to the attention of those working in the field and the general public. The Observatoire Universitaire en Médecine Rurale, which brings together general practitioners, sociologists and geographers, will benefit from the expertise and network of the MC to carry out its field surveys and applied research projects.

More specifically, the project has three specific objectives:

• Understand the mechanisms behind the disparity in the supply of general medicine in Wallonia, and in particular in the province of Namur.
• Create an index of the attractiveness of practice locations for young doctors.
• Evaluate the perception of accessibility to care in general medicine from the point of view of patients.

Expected results include the creation of specific indices and the formulation of recommendations to improve the situation in shortage areas. These results will be promoted via multiple channels: academic training at UNamur, the scientific community, the medical sector, politics, the general public.

The project will focus on three complementary phases:

1. Evolution of the GP profession in rural areas : This qualitative phase includes semi-directive interviews with GPs to understand the transformations of the profession and identify factors influencing the attractiveness of rural areas.
2. Attractiveness of practice locations for young doctors: An attractiveness index will be refined and implemented in a Geographic Information System (GIS) to assess locations conducive to the installation of young practitioners.
3. Accessibility to care for patients: A mixed analysis of quantitative and qualitative data will enable us to understand patients' perceptions of accessibility to care in rural areas.

The project therefore has the particularity of taking into account both the point of view of patients and healthcare providers in order to provide a 360° overview of the problem of the scarcity of supply in general practice, and in rural areas in particular.

This project extends two research projects already carried out as part of the OUMRu:

1. Rurality index for the Walloon Region: From December 2023 to April 2024, geographer Aliz Hevesi, under the direction of Catherine Linard (NARILIS-ILEE Institutes), created a rurality index at sub-municipal level, relevant for assessing situations of shortage at local level. This research also included work on the theoretical definition of an attractiveness index for young practitioners.
2. Perception of accessibility to care: From January to June 2025, sociologist Amélie Pierre (Institut Transitions), in collaboration with Dr. Dominique Henrion, coordinator of the OUMRu, is conducting a study to assess the perception of accessibility to general medical care in different regions, by interviewing a panel of 5.000 Belgian citizens via "The Social Study", as well as focus groups of patients in the provinces of Namur and Luxembourg.