The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners
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Randomized Controlled Trial Observational Study
Predicting illness progression for children with lower respiratory infections in primary care: a prospective cohort and observational study.
Antibiotics are commonly prescribed for children with lower respiratory tract infections (LRTIs), fuelling antibiotic resistance, and there are few prognostic tools available to inform management. ⋯ A simple three-item prognostic score could be useful as a tool to identify children with LRTI who are at low risk of an adverse outcome and to guide clinical management.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Patients' and GPs' views and expectations of home monitoring with a pulse oximeter: a mixed-methods process evaluation of a pilot randomised controlled trial.
Research on how home monitoring with a pulse oximeter is executed and experienced by patients with an acute illness such as COVID-19 and their GPs is scarce. ⋯ Structured home monitoring by pulse oximetry supports patients and their informal caregivers in managing, and GPs in monitoring, acute COVID-19 disease. It appears suitable for use in acutely ill patients in general practice.
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Spirometry services to diagnose and monitor lung disease in primary care were identified as a priority in the NHS Long Term Plan, and are restarting post-COVID-19 pandemic in England; however, evidence regarding best practice is limited. ⋯ Stakeholders highlighted historic challenges and the damaging effects of the pandemic contributing to inequity in provision of spirometry, which must be addressed. Overall, stakeholders were positive about the potential of AI to support clinicians in quality assessment and interpretation of spirometry. However, it was evident that validation of the software must be sufficiently robust for clinicians and healthcare commissioners to have trust in the process.
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GPs provide care for women across the lifespan. This care currently includes preconception and postpartum phases of a woman's life. Interconception care (ICC) addresses women's health issues between pregnancies that then have impact on maternal and infant outcomes, such as lifestyle and biomedical risks, interpregnancy intervals, and contraception provision. However, ICC in general practice is not well established. ⋯ Findings indicate that ICC is not a familiar concept for GPs, who feel that they have limited capacity to deliver such care. Further research to evaluate patient perspectives and potential models of care is required before ICC improvements can be developed, trialled, and evaluated. These models could include the colocation of multidisciplinary services and services in combination with well-child visits.
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Most cancer diagnostic pathways start from primary care and several factors affect the diagnostic processes. ⋯ A longer symptom duration and presenting without cancer-specific symptoms were associated with GPs assessing the diagnostic process as poor.