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Rural general practice patients' coping with hazards and harm: an interview study.

ABSTRACT: OBJECTIVE:The aim of this study is to identify and analyse rural general practice patients' experiences of hazards and harm that comprise adverse events, and their strategies for coping with them. DESIGN:Interview study using systematic text condensation and coping strategy theory in an abductive analysis process. SETTING:Nine rural general practice clinics in Norway. PARTICIPANTS:Twenty participants, aged 21-79 years, all presenting with recent onset of somatic and/or psychiatric complaints. RESULTS:Participating rural general practice patients described their experiences of a variety of hazards and harms. Their three most discussed cognitive and behavioural coping strategies were: (1) to accept the events; (2) to confront them and (3) to engage in planful problem-solving. While the participants demonstrated a tendency toward accepting hazards and harm that their regular general practitioner created, they were often willing to confront those that locum (ie, substitute) general practitioners created. Participants used planful problem-solving in situations they deemed hazardous, such as breaches of confidentiality or not being taken seriously, as well as during potential/actual emergencies. CONCLUSIONS:Patients at rural general practice clinics actively identify and respond to hazards and harm, applying three coping strategies. Thus, patients themselves may serve as an important safety barrier against hazards and harm; their potential contributions to improving patient safety must be appreciated accordingly and reflected in future research as well as in everyday clinical practice.

SUBMITTER: Harbitz MB

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6803137 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Rural general practice patients' coping with hazards and harm: an interview study.

Harbitz Martin Bruusgaard MB Brandstorp Helen H Gaski Margrete M

BMJ open 20191018 10

<h4>Objective</h4>The aim of this study is to identify and analyse rural general practice patients' experiences of hazards and harm that comprise adverse events, and their strategies for coping with them.<h4>Design</h4>Interview study using systematic text condensation and coping strategy theory in an abductive analysis process.<h4>Setting</h4>Nine rural general practice clinics in Norway.<h4>Participants</h4>Twenty participants, aged 21-79 years, all presenting with recent onset of somatic and/ ...[more]

PMID: 31630108

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Project description:OBJECTIVES:The National Health Service (NHS) in England recently introduced general practice pharmacists (GPPs) to provide medication-focused support to both patients and the general practice team. This healthcare model may benefit people with asthma, who currently receive suboptimal care and demonstrate low medication adherence. This study aimed to explore the perspectives of adults with asthma on the potential for pharmacist-led adherence support delivered in general practice, with a focus on how these perspectives are formed. DESIGN AND SETTING:The study was conducted in the United Kingdom (UK) utilising a qualitative interview methodology. Participants were invited to partake in a telephone-based semistructured interview, followed by an online questionnaire for demographic details and asthma history. Qualitative data were analysed using thematic analysis. PARTICIPANTS:Participants (n=17) were adults with asthma in the UK with a prescription for an inhaled corticosteroid. Participants did not have previous experience with GPPs and were asked to provide their views on a proposed GPP-led service. RESULTS:Participant perspectives of GPPs were determined by trust in pharmacists, perceived gaps in asthma care and the perceived strain on the NHS. Trust was based on pharmacists' perceived clinical competency, established over time, and gauged through a 'benchmarking' process. GPP's fit in current asthma care was assessed based on potential role overlap with other healthcare professionals, continuity of care and medication-related support needs. Participants navigated the NHS based on a perceived hierarchy of healthcare professionals (general practitioners on top, nurses, then pharmacists), and this influenced their perspectives of GPPs. CONCLUSION:While the GPP scheme shows promise based on the perspectives of people with asthma, the identified barriers to optimal patient engagement and service implementation will need to be addressed for the service to be effective.

Project description:ObjectiveLittle is known about differences in hospital harm (injury, suffering, disability, disease or death arising from hospital care) when people from rural and urban locations require hospital care. This study aimed to assess whether hospital harm risk differed by patients' rural or urban location using general practice data.DesignSecondary analysis of a 3-year retrospective cross-sectional general practice records review study, designed with equal numbers of rural and urban patients and patients from small, medium and large practices. Hospital admissions, interhospital transfer and hospital harm were identified.SettingNew Zealand (NZ) general practice clinical records including hospital discharge data.ParticipantsRandomly selected patient records from randomly selected general practices across NZ. Patient enrolment at rural and urban general practices defined patient location.OutcomesAdmission and harm risk and rate ratios by rural-urban location were investigated using multivariable analyses adjusted for age, sex, ethnicity, deprivation, practice size. Preventable hospital harm, harm severity and harm associated with interhospital transfer were analysed.ResultsOf 9076 patient records, 1561 patients (17%) experienced hospital admissions with no significant association between patient location and hospital admission (rural vs urban adjusted risk ratio (aRR) 0.98 (95% CI 0.83 to 1.17)). Of patients admitted to hospital, 172 (11%) experienced hospital harm. Rural location was not associated with increased hospital harm risk (aRR 1.01 (95% CI 0.97 to 1.05)) or rate of hospital harm per admission (adjusted incidence rate ratio 1.09 (95% CI 0.83 to 1.43)). Nearly half (45%) of hospital harms became apparent only after discharge. No urban patients required interhospital transfer, but 3% of rural patients did. Interhospital transfer was associated with over twice the risk of hospital harm (age-adjusted aRR 2.33 (95% CI 1.37 to 3.98), p=0.003).ConclusionsRural patient location was not associated with increased hospital harm. This provides reassurance for rural communities and health planners. The exception was patients needing interhospital transfer, where risk was more than doubled, warranting further research.

Project description:BACKGROUND:Evidence-based medicine (EBM) in general practice involves applying a complex combination of best-available evidence, the patient's preferences and the general practitioner's (GP) clinical expertise in decision-making. GPs and GP trainees learn how to apply EBM informally by observing each other's consultations, as well as through more deliberative forms of workplace-based learning. This study aims to gain insight into workplace-based EBM learning by investigating the extent to which GP supervisors and trainees recognise each other's EBM behaviour through observation, and by identifying aspects that influence their recognition. METHODS:We conducted a qualitative multicentre study based on video-stimulated recall interviews (VSI) of paired GP supervisors and GP trainees affiliated with GP training institutes in Belgium and the Netherlands. The GP pairs (n = 22) were shown fragments of their own and their partner's consultations and were asked to elucidate their own EBM considerations and the ones they recognised in their partner's actions. The interview recordings were transcribed verbatim and analysed with NVivo. By comparing pairs who recognised each other's considerations well with those who did not, we developed a model describing the aspects that influence the observer's recognition of an actor's EBM behaviour. RESULTS:Overall, there was moderate similarity between an actor's EBM behaviour and the observer's recognition of it. Aspects that negatively influence recognition are often observer-related. Observers tend to be judgemental, give unsolicited comments on how they would act themselves and are more concerned with the trainee-supervisor relationship than objective observation. There was less recognition when actors used implicit reasoning, such as mindlines (internalised, collectively reinforced tacit guidelines). Pair-related aspects also played a role: previous discussion of a specific topic or EBM decision-making generally enhanced recognition. Consultation-specific aspects played only a marginal role. CONCLUSIONS:GP trainees and supervisors do not fully recognise EBM behaviour through observing each other's consultations. To improve recognition of EBM behaviour and thus benefit from informal observational learning, observers need to be aware of automatic judgements that they make. Creating explicit learning moments in which EBM decision-making is discussed, can improve shared knowledge and can also be useful to unveil tacit knowledge derived from mindlines.

Project description:OBJECTIVE:To explore the attitudes and perceptions of health professionals towards management of hypothyroidism that contributes to the suboptimal treatment of hypothyroidism in general practice. DESIGN:A qualitative interview study using semistructured interviews. PARTICIPANTS:Sixteen participants were interviewed between March and August 2016 comprising nine general practitioners (GPs), four pharmacists, two practice nurses and one nurse practitioner. SETTING:General practice and community pharmacies in the counties of Northumberland, Tyne and Wear, Stockton-on-Tees and North Cumbria, North of England, UK. METHOD:A grounded-theory approach was used to generate themes from interviews, which were underpinned by the theory of planned behaviour to give explanation to the data. RESULTS:Although health professionals felt that hypothyroidism was easy to manage, GPs and nurses generally revealed inadequate knowledge of medication interactions and levothyroxine pharmacokinetics. Pharmacists felt limited in the advice that they provide to patients due to lack of access to patient records. Most GPs and nurses followed local guidelines, and relied on blood tests over clinical symptoms to adjust levothyroxine dose. The information exchanged between professional and patient was usually restricted by time and often centred on symptoms rather than patient education. Health professionals felt that incorrect levothyroxine adherence was the main reason behind suboptimal treatment, although other factors such as comorbidity and concomitant medication were mentioned. Enablers perceived by health professionals to improve the management of hypothyroidism included continuity of care, blood test reminders, system alerts for interfering medications and prescription renewal, and accessible blood tests and levothyroxine prescriptions for patients. CONCLUSION:There is a significant health professional behavioural component to the management of hypothyroidism. Addressing the differences in patient and professional knowledge and perceptions could reduce the barriers to optimal treatment, while continuity of care and increased involvement of pharmacists and practice nurses would help to promote optimal thyroid replacement.

Dataset Information

Rural general practice patients' coping with hazards and harm: an interview study.

Publications

Rural general practice patients' coping with hazards and harm: an interview study.

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