Family practice
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This study aimed to review published papers which use qualitative interviewing in general practice as their methodology. To look specifically at the detail of how the methodology is presented to the reader, with particular emphasis on the clarity of detail about recruitment, the relationship of the interviewer to the respondents, the setting and how the research was presented to the respondents. ⋯ Published papers using qualitative interviewing in general practice often lack explicit methodological detail about the relationship between the interviewer and the respondents, the setting, who did the recruiting and how the research was explained to the respondents. This methodological detail is important for the critical appraisal of qualitative research, where the context of the research can influence the data.
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Statistical power is a measure of the extent to which a study is capable of discerning differences or associations which exist within the population under investigation, and is of critical importance whenever a hypothesis is tested by statistics. Conventionally, studies should reach a power level of 0.8, such that four times out of five a false null hypothesis will be rejected by a study. Statistical power may most easily be increased by increasing sample size. ⋯ While achieving higher power than studies in similar surveys of other disciplines, the power of general practice research falls short of the 0.8 convention. Adequate power is essential so that effects which exist are not missed. Recommendations are made concerning power calculations prior to the start of research and reporting of results in journal articles.
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Information about use and attitudes of GPs towards complementary medicine is required in order to inform the debate about its place within mainstream medicine. There is evidence that public use of complementary medicine is particularly high in the South-West of England. ⋯ Over two-thirds of the GPs in Devon and Cornwall who responded to the survey had been involved with complementary medicine in some way during the previous week. This figure is higher than the national average. The majority of respondents believed that acupuncture, chiropractic and osteopathy were effective and should be funded by the NHS.