Background: Community health centers are an important component of the health system in Mali. Despite the adhesion of the populations and the commitment of the authorities many thing must be done to improve the quality of care provided in those structures.
Objectives: The study aimed to know on one hand the patients' utilization and perception of the curative care in the community health centers of the fifth commune of Bamako and on the other hand the physicians' satisfaction of their work condition and perspective in the community health sector.
Method: A cross-sectional study was conducted in nine community health centers of Bamako in 2008. A total of 270 patients were interviewed through a face to face interview. Thirteen physicians took a self administrated questionnaire.
Results: The sample was characterized by the low literacy (32.6%) and socio-economic level (15.9% of steady income). 139 patients evoked the nearness as the reason of health centers' choice whereas only 51 patients evoked the health staff skill. The womens felt more satisfied then men (p = 0.005) and illiterates felt more satisfied then bachelors & beyond (p = 0.034). The patients' claimed the reduction of waitiing time 54/270, the improvement of information and orientation system 51/270 and news services creation. 30.80% of physicians were satisfied from their material and financial conditions, 38.46% were motivated and 76.92% planed to leave their health center.
Conclusion: Although a high level of satisfaction regarding the provided service was observed, user reported some shortage in the quality of care and claimed a widening of CSCom capability.