Copying general practitioner referral letters to patients: a study of patients' views.. Van Zwanenberg T and Jelley D (2000) British Journal of General Practice, 50: 657-658.

2001 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 53-60
Author(s):  
Cliona Ni Brolchain
Keyword(s):  
General Practice ◽  
British Journal ◽  
General Practitioner ◽  
Referral Letters

scholarly journals Standing order use in general practice: the views of medicine, nursing and pharmacy stakeholder organisations

2017 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 47 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robyn Taylor ◽  
Eileen McKinlay ◽  
Caroline Morris
Keyword(s):  
General Practice ◽  
General Practitioner ◽  
Access To Health Care ◽  
Timely Manner ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Standing Order ◽  
Access To Health ◽  
General Practices ◽  
Pharmacy Data ◽  
The Impact

ABSTRACT INTRODUCTION Standing orders are used by many general practices in New Zealand. They allow a practice nurse to assess patients and administer and/or supply medicines without needing intervention from a general practitioner. AIM To explore organisational strategic stakeholders’ views of standing order use in general practice nationally. METHODS Eight semi-structured, qualitative, face-to-face interviews were conducted with participants representing key primary care stakeholder organisations from nursing, medicine and pharmacy. Data were analysed using a qualitative inductive thematic approach. RESULTS Three key themes emerged: a lack of understanding around standing order use in general practice, legal and professional concerns, and the impact on workforce and clinical practice. Standing orders were perceived to extend nursing practice and seen as a useful tool in enabling patients to access medicines in a safe and timely manner. DISCUSSION The variability in understanding of the definition and use of standing orders appears to relate to a lack of leadership in this area. Leadership should facilitate the required development of standardised resources and quality assurance measures to aid implementation. If these aspects are addressed, then standing orders will continue to be a useful tool in general practice and enable patients to have access to health care and, if necessary, to medicines without seeing a general practitioner.

scholarly journals Informative value of referral letters from general practice for child and adolescent mental healthcare

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Aydin ◽  
M. R. Crone ◽  
B. M. Siebelink ◽  
M. E. Numans ◽  
R. R. J. M. Vermeiren ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
General Practice ◽  
Nodal Point ◽  
Mental Healthcare ◽  
Child And Adolescent ◽  
Child And Adolescent Psychiatry ◽  
Discriminative Ability ◽  
Replication Studies ◽  
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorders ◽  
Referral Letters ◽  
Made In

AbstractAlthough referral letters (RLs) form a nodal point in a patient’s care journey, little is known about their informative value in child and adolescent mental healthcare. To determine the informative value of RLs to child and adolescent psychiatry, we conducted a chart review in medical records of minors registered at specialized mental healthcare between January 2015 and December 2017 (The Netherlands). Symptoms indicated in RLs originating from general practice (N = 723) were coded and cross-tabulated with the best estimate clinical classifications made in psychiatry. Results revealed that over half of the minors in the sample were classified in concordance with at least one reason for referral. We found fair to excellent discriminative ability for indications made in RLs concerning the most common psychiatric classifications (95% CI AUC: 60.9–70.6 for anxiety disorders to 90.5–100.0 for eating disorders). Logistic regression analyses suggested no statistically significant effects of gender, age, severity or mental healthcare history, with the exception of age and attention deficit hyperactivity disorders (ADHD), as RLs better predicted ADHD with increasing age (OR = 1.14, 95% CI 1.03–1.27). Contextual problems, such as difficulties studying, problems with parents or being bullied were indicated frequently and associated with classifications in various disorder groups. To conclude, general practitioners’ RLs showed informative value, contrary to common beliefs. Replication studies are needed to reliably incorporate RLs into the diagnostic work-up.

An acute eye condition masquerading as a flu-like syndrome: A potential pitfall in general practice

2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Evita Evangelia Christou ◽  
◽  
Xenophon Bazoukis ◽  
Alexandra Papoudou-Bai ◽  
Maria Stefaniotou ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
General Practice ◽  
Differential Diagnosis ◽  
General Practitioner ◽  
Gastrointestinal Symptoms ◽  
Angle Closure Glaucoma ◽  
Angle Closure ◽  
Potential Pitfall ◽  
Primary Angle Closure ◽  
Primary Angle Closure Glaucoma ◽  
Systemic Condition

Acute primary angle closure glaucoma may masquerade a systemic condition. Proper differential diagnosis is requisite. A 52-year-old female visited the general practitioner due to her progressively worsening headache accompanied by gastrointestinal symptoms. This condition presented acutely while reading a book at semiprone position in a not well illuminated room.

Psychiatric disorders in adolescents in primary care

1998 ◽  
Vol 173 (6) ◽  
pp. 508-513 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tami Kramer ◽  
M. Elena Garralda
Keyword(s):  
Primary Care ◽  
General Practice ◽  
General Practitioner ◽  
Psychiatric Disorders ◽  
Health Risks ◽  
Physical Symptoms ◽  
Global Assessment Scale ◽  
Scale Scores ◽  
Research Interviews ◽  
Internalising Disorders

BackgroundLittle is known about psychiatric disorders in adolescents who attend primary care.MethodProspective study of 13- to 16-year-olds consecutively attending general practice. Information was obtained from adolescents, parents and general practitioners, using questionnaires and research interviews.Results136/200 (68%) of adolescent attenders took part. Two per cent presented with psychiatric complaints. From research interviews with adolescents, psychiatric disorder in the previous year was found in 38%, with moderate impairment of functioning in over half (according to Children's Global Assessment Scale scores). Most disorders (42/50, 84%) were emotional (‘internalising’) disorders. Psychiatric disorders were significantly associated with high levels and intensity of physical symptoms and with increased health risks. General practitioner assessment of psychiatric disorders was low on sensitivity (20.8%) but high on specificity (90.7%). Doctors identified most severely affected adolescents.ConclusionsDepressive and anxiety disorders are common among adolescent general practice attenders and linked to increased physical symptoms; general practitioner recognition is limited.

scholarly journals Drivers of ‘clinically unnecessary’ use of emergency and urgent care: the DEUCE mixed-methods study

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (15) ◽  
pp. 1-256
Author(s):  
Alicia O’Cathain ◽  
Emma Knowles ◽  
Jaqui Long ◽  
Janice Connell ◽  
Lindsey Bishop-Edwards ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
General Practice ◽  
Mixed Methods ◽  
General Practitioner ◽  
Health Service ◽  
Health Services ◽  
Focus Groups ◽  
Emergency Departments ◽  
Help Seeking ◽  
Mixed Methods Study ◽  
Coping Capacity

Background There is widespread concern about the pressure on emergency and urgent services in the UK, particularly emergency ambulances, emergency departments and same-day general practitioner appointments. A mismatch between supply and demand has led to interest in what can be termed ‘clinically unnecessary’ use of services. This is defined by the research team in this study as ‘patients attending services with problems that are classified as suitable for treatment by a lower urgency service or self-care’. This is a challenging issue to consider because patients may face difficulties when deciding the best action to take, and different staff may make different judgements about what constitutes a legitimate reason for service use. Objectives To identify the drivers of ‘clinically unnecessary’ use of emergency ambulances, emergency departments and same-day general practitioner appointments from patient and population perspectives. Design This was a sequential mixed-methods study with three components: a realist review; qualitative interviews (n = 48) and focus groups (n = 3) with patients considered ‘clinically unnecessary’ users of these services, focusing on parents of young children, young adults and people in areas of social deprivation; and a population survey (n = 2906) to explore attitudes towards seeking care for unexpected, non-life-threatening health problems and to identify the characteristics of someone with a tendency for ‘clinically unnecessary’ help-seeking. Results From the results of the three study components, we found that multiple, interacting drivers influenced individuals’ decision-making. Drivers could be grouped into symptom related, patient related and health service related. Symptom-related drivers were anxiety or need for reassurance, which were caused by uncertainty about the meaning or seriousness of symptoms; concern about the impact of symptoms on daily activities/functioning; and a need for immediate relief of intolerable symptoms, particularly pain. Patient-related drivers were reduced coping capacity as a result of illness, stress or limited resources; fear of consequences when responsible for another person’s health, particularly a child; and the influence of social networks. Health service-related drivers were perceptions or previous experiences of services, particularly the attractions of emergency departments; a lack of timely access to an appropriate general practitioner appointment; and compliance with health service staff’s advice. Limitations Difficulty recruiting patients who had used the ambulance service to the interviews and focus groups meant that we were not able to add as much as we had anticipated to the limited evidence base regarding this service. Conclusions Patients use emergency ambulances, emergency departments and same-day general practitioner appointments when they may not need the level of clinical care provided by these services for a multitude of inter-related reasons that sometimes differ by population subgroup. Some of these reasons relate to health services, in terms of difficulty accessing general practice leading to use of emergency departments, and to population-learnt behaviour concerning the positive attributes of emergency departments, rather than to patient characteristics. Social circumstances, such as complex and stressful lives, influence help-seeking for all three services. Demand may be ‘clinically unnecessary’ but completely understandable when service accessibility and patients’ social circumstances are considered. Future work There is a need to evaluate interventions, including changing service configuration, strengthening general practice and addressing the stressors that have an impact on people’s coping capacity. Different subgroups may require different interventions. Study registration This study is registered as PROSPERO CRD42017056273. Funding This project was funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Health Services and Delivery Research programme and will be published in full in Health Services and Delivery Research; Vol. 8, No. 15. See the NIHR Journals Library website for further project information.

Consulting and certification

2014 ◽  
pp. 87-134
Author(s):  
Chantal Simon ◽  
Hazel Everitt ◽  
Françoise van Dorp ◽  
Matt Burkes
Keyword(s):  
General Practice ◽  
Organ Donation ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Home Visits ◽  
Electronic Media ◽  
Bad News ◽  
Patient Records ◽  
Out Of Hours ◽  
Breaking Bad ◽  
Referral Letters

The consultation Consultation models Patient records Telephone consulting and home visits Referral letters and electronic media Organization of out-of-hours services The doctor’s bag Social factors in general practice Benefits for people on low income Multicultural medicine Breaking bad news Confirmation and certification of death Organ donation...

scholarly journals Couple relationship problems—a task for the general practitioner? A cross-sectional survey from Norway

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Siri Dalsmo Berge ◽  
Eivind Meland ◽  
Mette Brekke ◽  
Gunnar Tschudi Bondevik ◽  
Frode Thuen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
General Practice ◽  
General Practitioner ◽  
Regression Models ◽  
Good Health ◽  
Couple Relationship ◽  
Cross Sectional Survey ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Relationship Problems ◽  
Logistic Regression Models ◽  
General Practices

Abstract Background A healthy couple relationship is a predictor of good health. There is a lack of knowledge about what role family and couples counselling should have in general practice. Objectives To identify the prevalence of patients who have talked, or want to talk, with their general practitioner (GP) about their couple relationship, to investigate what characterizes these patients and to explore whether they believe that couple relationship problems should be dealt with in general practice. Methods We conducted a cross-sectional survey in 70 general practices in Norway during spring 2019. A questionnaire was answered by 2178 consecutive patients (response rate 75%) in GP waiting rooms. Data were examined using frequencies and linear and logistic regression models. Results We included 2097 responses. Mean age was 49.0 years and 61.3% were women. One in four (25.0%) had already talked with their GP about couple relationship problems, while one in three (33.5%) wanted to talk with their GP about their couple relationship problems. These patients more frequently had experience of divorce, poor self-rated health, an opinion that their couple relationship had a significant impact on their health and lower couple relationship quality when adjusted for age, sex, present marital status and children living at home. We found that 46.4% of patients believed that GPs should be interested in their couple relationship problems. Conclusion Relationship problems are frequently addressed in general practice. GPs should be prepared to discuss this issue to facilitate help for couples earlier than they might otherwise expect.

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