Social prescribing necessitates not only effective referral processes from general practices and a linking mechanism to community service options but also a vibrant community and voluntary sector. Besides ensuring stakeholder buy-in from voluntary organisations, such as voluntary sports clubs, social prescribing also seems to require supportive contextual factors, including...
A significant proportion of general practitioners (GP) practice, recommend or prescribe complementary medicine (CM) to their patients. However, so far, little is known about their prescribing and referral habits, as well as their needs and expectations regarding CM in everyday practice. This study aimed at exploring how CM is viewed and experienced by GPs in clinical practice in...
Postpartum depression has a significant impact on the lives of the mother, her family, and the newborn. Yet, there is a significant delay in the diagnosis and treatment. Although many primary-care physicians believe it is their role to identify and treat postpartum depression, many of them do not perform screening modalities, and do not initiate treatment. The aim of this...
Access to dental care in France faces two main barriers: high out-of-pocket costs and a widely uneven distribution of dentists. Multiprofessional primary care groups (MPCGs) are currently in development to improve primary care efficiency and enhance the attractiveness of medically underserved areas. We aim to address the research question: What factors influence the income and...
Heart failure (HF) is frequently diagnosed during hospital admission, often after symptoms have been present for some time. Those diagnosed in hospital typically experience higher mortality reflecting not only possible diagnostic delay but also greater illness severity at presentation. The reasons behind delayed HF diagnosis are multifaceted and complex. This study aimed to...
Health services in Sudan have been severely disrupted during the ongoing war, leading to a decline in the availability and readiness of services at the primary care level. This study aimed to evaluate the availability and readiness of healthcare services at Sudanese primary healthcare centers (PHCCs) during the current conflict. A cross-sectional study was conducted in four out...
An ageing population and its association with a rising prevalence of co-existing multiple chronic conditions poses increasing challenges for healthcare systems worldwide. In line with the World Health Organization ambition for societies to develop integrated care models and person-centered care, this study aimed to investigate what health means for individuals managing multiple...
Obesity, overweight and their associated diseases pose serious challenges to the health system. General practitioners are in an especially favourable position to contribute to obesity prevention, make timely diagnoses, and initiate treatment in their patients. Beyond individual findings, the German-speaking world has a lack of studies giving a reliable reflection of the status...
Chronic diseases are heavily influenced by social determinants of health (SDoH), requiring care that extends beyond medical interventions to address underlying issues. Social prescribing, which connects individuals to community resources, offers holistic care complementary to health systems. However, social prescribing requires context-specific tailoring and ongoing evaluation to...
Establishing risk factors associated with severity and prognosis in the early stages of the disease is important to identify patients who need specialized care. Creating new clinical tools to improve health decisions and outcomes in the population is essential. This study aimed to identify prognostic factors associated with poor outcomes of COVID-19 at diagnosis in Primary Health...
To analyze how the complexity of consultation among family physicians has evolved between 2019 and 2022. This was a cross-sectional, multicenter, observational study conducted across 30 healthcare centers in Catalonia, Spain. A total of 90 physicians were selected through convenience sampling, with 26 of them participating in all study years. The study followed a descriptive...
Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) related healthcare expenditure is expected to rise drastically as the incidence of diabetes associated comorbidities increases. It is vital to maintain an optimum glycaemia for patients with diabetes to reduce the risk of diabetes complications. Given the strong predictive value for diabetes complications, HbA1c remains the gold standard to monitor...
Diabetes mellitus is one of the most prevalent chronic diseases worldwide. China has the highest number of diabetic cases worldwide. However, diabetes mellitus is associated with poor awareness, treatment, and control rates. Thus, strategies such as shared decision-making (SDM) are needed to improve diabetes management. In China, SDM training tailored for general practitioners...
Tanzania has long prioritized primary health care (PHC) as the pathway to achieving universal health coverage. However, greater, and more effective investments are needed to expand access to quality PHC services and further improve population health outcomes. Furthermore, as Tanzania graduated to lower-middle-income country status, the Government is expected to move towards full...
This study explored patients’ reasons for participating in a mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) course offered by their general practitioner and their experiences and outcomes of the course. Data were obtained through qualitative interviews with ten participants (aged 44–75 years) of European descent, from a general practice in Denmark. The participants had varying levels...
A postpartum check-up regarding women’s health and well-being is recommended four to eight weeks after giving birth. We aimed to study postpartum check-ups with General Practitioners (GPs) in Norway. We assessed attendance, importance of key topics, check-up content and patient satisfaction. We conducted a cross-sectional countywide survey among women who gave birth in the...
Physical activity on prescription (PAP) is a recommended method in Swedish and European primary healthcare, yet implementation remains inconsistent. This study explored barriers and strategies for strengthening PAP use in a region with low prescription rates, from the perspective of healthcare personnel and managers. A mixed-methods study with an explanatory sequential design was...
Primary care physicians (PCPs) face challenging clinical situations. Telemedicine between PCPs and specialists involving case discussions in cardiology are frequent. Assessing these interactions is essential for identifying knowledge gaps and tailoring support. In Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, two new telemedicine services provide cardiology support for PCPs: one from the Municipal...
Despite being recommended in clinical practice guidelines as an effective strategy to control blood pressure, self-measured blood pressure monitoring (SMBP) adoption in the US remains low with clear disparities among underserved patients. Our objective was to develop a prototype SMBP Clinical Integration Package to support the use of standard, cost-effective SMBP devices...
Primary care clinic sustainability affects healthcare service delivery. However, the impact of prescription patterns on primary care clinic sustainability remains unclear. We analyzed the association between prescription patterns of frequently used medications and primary care clinic closures in South Korea. We used Korean National Health Insurance Service data on office-based...
There is a large demand gap for home-based medical services. Understanding the characteristics of people in need of services can help provide relevant services more effectively and accurately. To understand the health status categories and characteristics of home-based medical services for older patients with chronic diseases. A cross-sectional research method was used to...
Breast cancer is the leading cancer among women in Kuwait, yet mammography screening (MS) uptake remains suboptimal despite the Kuwait National Mammography Screening Program (KNMSP). This study identifies barriers to MS adherence among Kuwaiti women aged 40–69, focusing on sociocultural, knowledge-related, and systemic factors. A cross-sectional study was conducted across five...
Despite the critical role of professional competence in providing quality primary health care, evidence on the facilitators and barriers to health professionals’ competence is limited. Therefore, we explored factors influencing health professionals’ competence in delivering quality primary health care in Amhara region, Ethiopia. A qualitative case study was conducted in Amhara...
Depression in older adults is mainly treated in general practice but is often constrained by limited resources in primary healthcare services and suboptimal access to assistance from specialized care. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of a structured collaborative model between GPs and geriatric psychiatrists compared to standard follow-up for individuals aged ≥ 65...
The primary health care system is acknowledged as the essential entry point to health services. In Iran, primary health care has historically been a key focus for policymakers. However, the accreditation of these services has only recently gained attention as a significant consideration. This study aims to qualitatively examine the prerequisites necessary for the effective...