Assessing the outcome of making it easier for patients to change general practitioner: practice characteristics associated with patient movements.

BACKGROUND. The government white paper, Promoting better health, suggested that primary health care services should be made more responsive to patient needs and that competition, brought about by the freer movement of patients between practices, could act as a mechanism for improving the quality of the services provided. Policy changes reflecting these aims were introduced with the 1990 contract for general practitioners. AIM. A study was carried out to estimate the volume of patient movement between practices not attributable to a patient's change of address or to a major change in the practice they had left, and to investigate which practice characteristics patients moved towards and which they moved away from when changing general practitioner. METHOD. Data on 2617 patient movements during June 1991 were collected from five family health services authorities. These patient movements were analysed in relation to data on practice characteristics obtained from family health services authority records. RESULTS. The estimated volume of movement of patients between practices was small (1.6% of the registered population per year). The majority of movements were between group practices; a quarter of the movements recorded were to single-handed general practitioners. However, the ratio of the number of movements from group practices to single-handed general practitioners compared with those from single-handed general practitioners to group practices was 1.37 (95% confidence interval 1.19 to 1.57). In choosing single-handed general practitioners these patients were willing to forgo access to a woman general practitioner, extended services and greater hours of general practitioner availability. Among the subset of movements between group practices, patients were more likely to gain access to a practice nurse, longer surgery hours and a woman general practitioner as a consequence of their move. CONCLUSION. The scale of patient movement observed did not indicate any substantial mechanism by which the new policy of encouraging consumerist behaviour on the part of primary care users could effect desired changes in primary care practice. Among the patient movements observed, the evidence suggests that when choosing a practice potential patients were not deterred by the fact that a practice was single-handed. The public's perception of the factors contributing to a high quality of service may conflict with the official characterization of good practice and high quality services in primary health care.     

Exploratory study of general practitioners'' orientations to general practice and responses to change.

BACKGROUND. Research into general practitioners' responses to the changes in the health service has focused on the quantifiable dimensions of workload, stress, job satisfaction and mental health. AIM. This study set out to investigate general practitioners' practice orientations and responses to change. METHOD. The study was undertaken in 1992. 'Young principals' who had attended MSD Foundation regional courses were invited by letter to reflect on recent change in general practice and to give their views on morale and recruitment. RESULTS. Forty nine young principals responded (response rate 45%). Responses were found to cluster around four orientations to practice: collectivism, pragmatism, traditionalism, and alienation. These varied in terms of four underlying values: autonomy, individualism, external referent and optimism. CONCLUSION. General practitioners' responses to change are more complex than is currently understood and are influenced by orientation to practice. In a relatively homogeneous 'enthusiastic' subgroup of general practitioners there is striking variation in practice orientation.     

Salaried general practice in Czechoslovakia: personal observations and impressions.

In 1991, a visit was undertaken, to the former Czechoslovakia, during which discussions were held with general practitioners. Some personal observations and impressions from the visit are presented. For four decades, salaried general practice was a feature of the Czechoslovakian health care system. Primary health care comprised three strands: paediatric services, an occupational health service and community general practitioner care. The main point of service delivery was the polyclinic which, although being large and impersonal, provided easy access to other primary and secondary services. General practitioners, over half of whom were women, had regular leave entitlement and predictable hours of work, out of hours work being provided through separate contracts based on primary care emergency centres. However, doctors were poorly paid compared with industrial workers. Following the 'velvet revolution' in 1989, all aspects of the health service have been subject to major review, and salaried general practice is likely to give way to a more entrepreneurial system.     

The general practitioner in the inner city: a survey of a London health district

A survey of general practitioners in Tower Hamlets health district in London is reported. The findings indicate a caring and concerned group of doctors who are working under considerable difficulty. The pattern of general practice in this district is dissimilar to the rest of the country, with infrequent use of attached staff, poor accommodation, more single-handed practices, and a predominance of elderly doctors trained overseas and either approaching or beyond conventional retirement age. Some suggestions are made towards the future development of the family doctor service.     

Annual assessments of patients aged 75 years and over: views and experiences of elderly people.

BACKGROUND. The 1990 contract requires general practitioners to offer all their patients aged 75 years and over an annual health check. Increasing importance is being placed on consumers' views of service provision. AIM. A study was undertaken in June 1992 to investigate elderly patients' views and experiences of the annual health check, and to compare these with the previously reported views of general practitioners and practice nurses who had also been surveyed as part of the study. METHOD. Twenty family health services authorities wrote to a sample of 1500 elderly patients asking if the patient's name could be passed to researchers. Patients who agreed were then interviewed. RESULTS. A total of 664 elderly patients (44%) were interviewed. Only 64% of respondents were aware of their entitlement to a health check. Vulnerable patients, such as those in poor health or who lived alone, were less likely to know about the health checks than other patients. Only 31% of respondents thought they had had a health check. Of these, fewer than half recalled the doctor or nurse discussing the findings with them, although 80% of doctors reported that they always or mostly discussed results with patients. Elderly patients were more likely to recall the physical aspects of the health check rather than discussion about particular health aspects. However, doctors and nurses felt that routine checks were useful for giving advice rather than detecting medical problems. Of those who had had a health check, 82% reported no improvement in their health as a result, but 93% thought that they were a good idea. Only 7% of doctors thought they were of value, compared with the majority of nurses. CONCLUSION. It appeared that the inverse care law was operating, with those more in need of the service being less likely to have known about it. Discrepancies were found between general practitioners' and practice nurses' reports of service provision and those of elderly patients. Evidence about the cost-effectiveness of regular health checks may help the conflict between professional scepticism and consumer enthusiasm for these assessments.     

Psychiatry and general practice: results of a survey of Avon general practitioners

A survey of general practitioners' views on psychiatry and the psychiatric services within an area has shown that considerable problems exist between general practitioners and psychiatrists over the care of patients with mental illness.     

Fundholders'' referral patterns and perceptions of service quality in hospital provision of elective general surgery.

BACKGROUND. The introduction of fundholding established an internal market in public sector health care, involving purchasers and providers contracting for the supply of health care. AIM. This study set out to examine fundholders' hospital referral patterns, and to evaluate the quality of the service provided to patients undergoing elective general surgery, as perceived by fundholding general practitioners. METHOD. A questionnaire was posted to the senior partners of all fundholding practices in the Trent Regional Health Authority area. This questionnaire requested assessments of the importance of 13 specified aspects of service quality and the quality of provision by general practitioners' most frequently-used hospitals. Five-point scales were employed in each case. Respondents were asked to provide additional details about their practice. RESULTS. A 67% response rate was achieved. Confidence in the consultant's ability, short waiting times and informative feedback from the providers emerged as the most important elements in referral decisions, while the cost of treatment and patient convenience received lower importance ratings. In terms of how well their providers were seen to perform, fundholders ranked confidence in the consultant and patient convenience highest, and style of hospital management lowest. The majority of referrals seemed to be local. CONCLUSION. Judged in terms of fundholders' perceptions, sizeable variations in service quality between hospital providers of general surgery are evident.     

Links between mental health care professionals and general practices in England and Wales: the impact of GP fundholding.

BACKGROUND: Fundholding general practitioners are able to determine the type of contracts they place with providers of mental health care, and are able to employ some categories of mental health care professionals directly. The impact of this on the care of the mental health of patients in non-fundholding practices is not yet fully known. AIM: A survey was undertaken of 100 fundholding general practices and 100 similarly sized non-fundholding practices in order to investigate the changes in mental health provision made by general practitioners. METHODS: A sample of 100 fundholding general practices in England and Wales was randomly chosen from the list supplied by the Association of Fundholders and matched to a similarly randomly chosen sample of non-fundholding practices. Postal questionnaires were sent to the senior partner and to the practice manager in each practice. RESULTS: The number of mental health care professionals who are either employed by or attached to general practices, or who visit the general practice on a regular basis appears to have increased substantially since 1991. This increase was particularly marked in fundholding practices. The results suggest that general practitioners with specific links to particular mental health care providers were more satisfied with the service provided by the mental health care team, and more likely to increase referrals to that service in the last 2 years, than general practitioners without such links. There was little evidence to suggest that increasing the number of mental health care professionals in primary care had brought about a major reduction in referrals to psychiatrists. CONCLUSION: General practitioners, particularly fundholders, are increasing their links with mental health professionals, and community psychiatric nurses, psychiatrists, psychologists and counsellors are spending more time either based in general practice or visiting regularly. While the shift of resources to primary care, particularly to fundholders, may increase the treatment options available to patients with less severe illnesses, this may have the effect of reducing the services available for the long-term and severely mentally ill.     

Investigation of benefits and costs of an ophthalmic outreach clinic in general practice.

BACKGROUND: With the advent of general practitioner fundholding, there has been growth in outreach clinics covering many specialties. The benefits and costs of this model of service provision are unclear. AIM: A pilot study aimed to evaluate an outreach model of ophthalmic care in terms of its impact on general practitioners, their use of secondary ophthalmology services, patients' views, and costs. METHOD: A prospective study, from April 1992 to March 1993, of the introduction of an ophthalmic outreach service in 17 general practices in London was undertaken. An ophthalmic outreach team, comprising an ophthalmic medical practitioner and an ophthalmic nurse, held clinics in the practices once a month. Referral rates to Edgware General Hospital ophthalmology outpatient department over one year from the study practices were compared with those from 17 control practices. General practitioners' assessments of the scheme and its impact on their knowledge and practice of ophthalmology were sought through a postal survey of all partners and interviews with one partner in each practice. Patient surveys were conducted using self-administered structured questionnaires. A costings exercise compared the outreach model with the conventional hospital ophthalmology outpatient clinic. RESULTS: Of 1309 patients seen by the outreach team in the study practices, 480 (37%) were referred to the ophthalmology outpatient department. The annual referral rate to this department from control practices was 9.5 per 10,000 registered patients compared with 3.8 per 10,000 registered patients from study practices. A total of 1187 patients were referred to the outpatient department from control practices. An increase in knowledge of ophthalmology was reported by 18 of 47 general practitioners (38%). Nineteen (40%) of 47 general practitioners took advantage of the opportunity for inservice training with the outreach team; they were more likely to change their routine practice for ophthalmic care or referral criteria for patients with cataracts or diabetes than those who did not attend for inservice training. The outreach scheme was popular with patients, for whom ease of access and familiarity of surroundings were major advantages. The cost per patient seen in the outreach clinics (48.09 pounds) was about three times the cost per patient seen in the outpatient department (15.71 pounds). CONCLUSION: The model of ophthalmic outreach care in this pilot study was popular with patients and general practitioners and appeared to act as an effective filter of demand for care in the hospital setting. However, the educational impact of the scheme was limited. Although the unit costs (per patient) of the outreach scheme compared unfavourably with those of conventional outpatient treatment, potential health gains from this more accessible model of care require further exploration.     

Annual assessment of patients aged 75 years and over: general practitioners'' and practice nurses'' views and experiences.

BACKGROUND. The new contract for general practitioners, introduced in 1990, required them to offer an annual assessment, or 'health check', to patients aged 75 years or more. AIM. A study was undertaken to collect details of practice organization of these assessments, general practitioners' and practice nurses' experience of assessments, and their views of the value of such assessments. METHOD. A nationwide postal survey of 1000 general practitioners and interview surveys with general practitioners and practices nurses from 150 practices were carried out in 1992. RESULTS. The postal survey yielded a response rate of 69% and the interview survey a practice response rate of 76%. Organization of assessments varied enormously between, and often within, practices with a variety of methods of invitation and assessment instruments being used. Of general practitioners 13% did not use a letter of any sort to invite patients to attend, and many doctors excluded certain patients from assessment, particularly those who were seen regularly or had been seen recently. However, 70% of general practitioners estimated that they had assessed over 60% of their elderly patients in the first year (1990-91). A substantial proportion of assessments were estimated to have been conducted on an opportunistic basis and few practices were doing all the assessments of those aged 75 years and over in the patients' homes. In the majority of practices, the general practitioners and practice nurses were the only personnel carrying out assessments. Only 9% of the doctors and 34% of the nurses interviewed had been specially trained to carry out the assessment; 54% of nurses said they would like more training in this area. Both doctors and nurses reported that the assessments did detect previously unknown problems, although over half of doctors reported that they rarely picked up new mental health problems. Increased referrals to social services as a direct result of the assessments were reported by 63% of doctors. The majority of doctors and nurses reported that routine assessments were useful in providing advice and reassurance to elderly people. Two thirds of doctors said they would continue to offer at least selected groups of their elderly patients routine assessments, even if not contractually obliged to do so. CONCLUSION. The findings suggest that the experiences of the first two years of this activity had convinced some general practitioners that routine assessment of elderly patients is worthwhile. However the increased demand for other services must obviously be met by an increase in resources if the effectiveness of these assessments is not to be undermined.     

Attitudes to community psychiatry among urban and rural general practitioners.

General practitioners' requirements for community psychiatric services may differ according to the area in which they practise. A questionnaire survey of general practitioners' attitudes to community psychiatric services is reported from three contrasting areas: an inner city urban area, a new town and a rural area. General practitioners in all areas wanted more consultation with psychiatrists, and 53-68% wanted regular psychiatric outpatient clinics in their surgeries. There was enthusiasm for community psychiatric nurses and for help with psychotherapy. In the rural area general practitioners favoured surgery based psychiatric outpatient clinics and arranging emergency hospital admissions themselves; in urban areas domiciliary visits from psychiatrists to help with emergencies were favoured. These results appear to reflect the greater geographical distance between primary and hospital based secondary care in rural as opposed to urban areas. Overall, general practitioners wanted more support from community psychiatric services in carrying out their primary therapeutic role especially in rural areas far from hospital-based psychiatric services.     

Working with community mental health professionals: a survey among general practitioners.

Links between general practitioners and mental health professionals, such as counsellors, psychiatrists, community psychiatric nurses, clinical psychologists and social workers, are increasing in number and type. The aim of this survey was to elicit general practitioners' attitudes to these workers, comparing those with a link with a mental health worker and those without. General practitioners in two district health authorities were surveyed and a response rate of 70% was obtained. General practitioners linked to a mental health professional were more likely to have made a referral to that service in the previous three months and, on the whole, were more satisfied with that service. The commonest problem reported by respondents was the length of waiting lists. Regarding liaison with social workers, inadequate feedback and difficulty with contact were the problems mentioned most by doctors. A number of general practitioners expressed a desire for closer contact with all these mental health services. While caution is required in ascribing causality to these relationships, it is clear that a closer working relationship between general practitioners and mental health workers is productive and is valued by general practitioners. The challenge for policy makers is to structure mental health provision in such a way that more general practitioners are able to benefit than at present.     

Views of pregnant women on the involvement of general practitioners in maternity care.

BACKGROUND: The reorganization of maternity services in England following the report Changing childbirth is likely to impinge upon general practitioners' contribution to maternity care. Professionals and managers are increasingly expected to take account of patients' views when reorganizing services. AIM: This study aimed to elicit women's views about the involvement of general practitioners in maternity care and to establish the extent of continuity provided by general practitioners. METHOD: A prospective cohort postal questionnaire survey was undertaken in the Bath health district to elicit the views of pregnant women about the general practitioner's role in maternity care, the continuity provided, patient satisfaction and the general practitioner-patient relationship. Responses were rated on five-point Likert scales. Women completed questionnaires at 24 and eight weeks before the birth and at two and eight weeks after the birth. RESULTS: Of 164 women entering the study (28 of whom were booked for home delivery and 136 for hospital delivery), 116 (71%) completed all four survey questionnaires. Of respondents 68% agreed that general practitioners play an important role in routine antenatal care and 53% that they have an important role in normal labour. These opinions appeared to be stable over time. Most women (73%) were cared for throughout their pregnancy by one general practitioner whom they knew well; such continuity was desired by nearly all the women in the study. Approximately three quarters of women were satisfied with the antenatal, postnatal and overall care provided by their general practitioner. Over half of respondents (56%) wished to get to know the doctor who would be present at the birth: the general practitioner was involved in 19 labours (16%), being present at the birth for only nine women. Women delivering at home were significantly more likely to agree with the statement that they knew the doctor present at the birth compared with those women delivering at hospital. Most women (91%) had their final six-week postnatal check with their general practitioner. CONCLUSION: Most women in this study believed that general practitioners are important in maternity care, providing continuity of antenatal and postnatal care but not of intrapartum care. These beliefs might be an indicator of the future situation in the United Kingdom when more women give birth at home and under non-consultant care. The vocational training and continuing education of general practitioners should accommodate their possible future roles in maternity care.     

Effects of a community mental health service on the practice and attitudes of general practitioners.

Recent years have seen closer links developing between general practitioners and mental health specialists. A study was undertaken in Manchester to determine the effects of a new community mental health service on the practice and attitudes of general practitioners. Ten doctors had access to the community based psychiatric team over a three year period while another 10 doctors continued to use hospital services. Those with access to the team were significantly more satisfied with the specialist support services, and were more likely to give high priority to community psychiatric nurses and psychiatric social workers working as part of a primary health care team than those without access to the service. Those with access were more willing than those without access to share with psychiatrists the care of patients with chronic neurotic disorders. The community mental health team was considered particularly helpful in reducing the burden posed by patients with neurotic and psychosocial problems, but this resulted in the general practitioners doing less counselling themselves. The study did not find that the new service had an effect on the general practitioners' ability to detect or manage psychiatric illness.     

Norfolk general practice: a comparison of rural and urban doctors

A postal questionnaire was sent to all Norfolk practitioners, allowing a comparison to be made between rural general practice and urban practice in Norwich and Great Yarmouth. However, when Norfolk town and country doctors were compared, little difference was found in their personal or practice characteristics. In respect of their workload rural doctors, as expected, carried out more procedures overall but, somewhat surprisingly, did not make more home visits. Both sets of doctors had similar views on their present and future role in general practice.

When Norfolk doctors collectively were compared with general practitioners nationally their service appeared to be of a high standard. The only uncertainty surrounded the effects of the greater clustering of Norfolk surgeries, together with the levels of home visiting and their attendant effects on patient accessibility.

     

Attitudes towards practice nurses--survey of a sample of general practitioners in England and Wales.

Practice nursing has expanded rapidly since the 1990 contract for general practitioners. In 1990, a national survey was undertaken of the attitudes of a random sample of general practitioners towards practice nurses. Responses to the postal questionnaire were received from 41.9% of the 4800 general practitioners sampled. Of the responding general practitioners, 90.0% were satisfied with the role of the practice nurse within their practice. To fulfil the requirements of the 1990 contract for general practitioners 50.7% had created a new nursing post, and 83.1% had expanded the role of nurses already employed; 89.7% wished to see further expansion of the practice nurse's role. However, lack of space was the factor most frequently reported as limiting the expansion of the practice nurse's role, mentioned by 76.0% of general practitioners. Only 43.7% of general practitioners recognized lack of opportunities for practice nurse training as a hindrance to role expansion. The key to managing the expansion of the role of the practice nurse lies in the provision of resources and in training. A pressing need exists for a national training scheme based in general practice.     

An agenda for change in referral--consensus from general practice.

BACKGROUND. Wide variations in rates of referral from primary to secondary care have been a matter of concern for many years. Effective strategies for optimizing referral depend on doctors being able to understand what the influences on their referral behaviour are, as well as having the ability to identify priority areas for action and to develop strategies for pushing through effective measures. AIM. This study set out to ascertain general practitioners' priorities for change with respect to the referral process, and to set an agenda for change to be tackled by general practitioners, providers, policy makers and educationalists. METHOD. Through the use of the Delphi technique and focused interviews, general practitioners throughout Northumberland contributed to the consensus view. RESULTS. The main themes to emerge related to hospital waiting lists, open access, flow of information between secondary and primary care and general practitioners' knowledge and training. Ideas for implementing change included the production of directories of hospital services and the development of guidelines for the use of the term 'urgent' in referral letters. CONCLUSION. All of the proposed changes are manageable and share the burden between general practice and other professionals with an interest in the referral process.     

Practice nurse workload before and after the introduction of the 1990 contract for general practitioners.

BACKGROUND. A study of practice nurse workload in 1989 by the East Anglian reporting system revealed that nurses were undertaking a wide range of activities, with 12% of nursing time being spent on administration. The 1990 contract for general practitioners emphasized the role of general practice in health promotion. AIM. The 1989 study was repeated by the East Anglian reporting system in 1992 to investigate changes in practice nurse workload. METHOD. Nurses in 22 practices recorded all the procedures they performed and their duration, over a two week period. RESULTS. The number of practice nurses in each practice had increased from 0.7 full time equivalents in 1989 to 1.2 in 1992. The proportion of time spent on administration had increased to 19%. The number of different procedures performed by practice nurses had risen from 36 in 1989 to 54 in 1992, with most new activity in well person and new patient clinics. CONCLUSION. Changes have taken place in the volume and range of work undertaken by practice nurses. There is potential for practice nurses to use the results both for negotiation and for education.