Objectives China is facing the unprecedented challenge of rapidly increasing rural-To-urban migration. Migrants are in a vulnerable state when they attempt to access to primary care services. This study was designed to explore rural-To-urban migrants' experiences in primary care, comparing their quality of primary care experiences under different types of medical institutions in Guangzhou, China. Methods The study employed a cross-sectional survey of 736 rural-To-urban migrants in Guangzhou, China in 2014. A validated Chinese version of Primary Care Assessment Tool-Adult Short Version (PCAT-AS), representing 10 primary care domains was used to collect information on migrants' quality of primary care experiences. These domains include first contact (utilization), first contact (accessibility), ongoing care, coordination (referrals), coordination (information systems), comprehensiveness (services available), comprehensiveness (services provided), family-centeredness, community orientation and culturally competent. These measures were used to assess the quality of primary care performance as reported from patients' perspective. Analysis of covariance was conducted for comparison on PCAT scores among migrants accessing primary care in tertiary hospitals, municipal hospitals, community health centers/community health stations, and township health centers/rural health stations. Multiple linear regression models were used to explore factors associated with PCAT total scores. Results After adjustments were made, migrants accessing primary care in tertiary hospitals (25.49) reported the highest PCAT total scores, followed by municipal hospitals (25.02), community health centers/community health stations (24.24), and township health centers/rural health stations (24.18). Tertiary hospital users reported significantly better performance in first contact (utilization), first contact (accessibility), coordination (information system), comprehensiveness (service available), and cultural competence. Community health center/ community health station users reported significantly better experience in the community orientation domain. Township health center/rural health station users expressed significantly better experience in the ongoing care domain. There were no statistically significant differences across settings in the ongoing care, comprehensiveness (services provided), and family-centeredness domains. Multiple linear regression models showed that factors positively associated with higher PCAT total scores also included insurance covering parts of healthcare payment (P<0.001). Conclusions This study highlights the need for improvement in primary care provided by primary care institutions for rural-To-urban migrants. Relevant policies related to medical insurance should be implemented for providing affordable healthcare services for migrants accessing primary care. © 2015 Zeng et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

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coordination urban population China primary medical care multicenter study Human Migration clinical trial health insurance human middle aged rural population controlled study comparative study Aged instrument validation cultural competence Cross-Sectional Studies cross-sectional study migrant family Humans Adolescent model male female multiple linear regression analysis tertiary care center Tertiary Care Centers theoretical model Models, Theoretical adult migration information system health center Delivery of Health Care primary health care analysis of covariance health care delivery