The European journal of general practice
-
The COVID-19 pandemic has had a substantial impact on primary care throughout Europe and globally. ⋯ The COVID-19 pandemic has considerably impacted on primary care at both service and patient levels, and various strategies to mitigate these impacts have been described. Future research examining the pandemic's ongoing impacts on primary care, as well as strategies to mitigate these impacts, is a priority.
-
Paracetamol is recommended as first-line treatment for an acute sore throat. However, in primary care, antibiotics are still frequently prescribed as first-line management for sore throat. ⋯ GPs play a major role in educating patients about paracetamol as effective pain-relieving treatment in acute sore throat. By actively exploring the patients' ideas, concerns and expectations (ICE), patients' satisfaction and guideline adherence could be improved.
-
Signs of the systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) - fever (or hypothermia), tachycardia and tachypnoea - are used in the hospital setting to identify patients with possible sepsis. ⋯ Although patients with abnormal vital signs of SIRS were referred more often, decreased oxygen saturation, hypotension and rapid illness progression seem to be most important for GPs to guide further management.
-
Observational Study
Drug interactions detected by a computer-assisted prescription system in primary care patients in Spain: MULTIPAP study.
Drug interactions increase the risk of treatment failure, intoxication, hospital admissions, consultations and mortality. Computer-assisted prescription systems can help to detect interactions. ⋯ Drug interactions are prevalent in patients aged 65-74 years with multimorbidity and polypharmacy. The clinically relevant DDI frequency is low. The number of prescriptions taken is the most relevant factor associated with presenting a clinically relevant DDI.
-
Patients with chronic conditions pose a major challenge to the Danish healthcare system. Since 2018, disease management programmes for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and type 2 diabetes (T2D) were introduced in Denmark. Treatment in hospitals should be reserved for those patients who require specialised treatment. Hence, more patients with COPD and T2D fall within the general practitioners' (GPs) responsibility. ⋯ According to the GPs, they continue to play an important role as treatment coordinators to ensure coherence and high quality in treating patients with COPD and type 2 diabetes.