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Asthma: communication between hospital and general practitioners
M K Marks1, J L Hynson, G Karabatsos
1Department of Paediatrics, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia. marksm@cryptic.rch.unimelb.edu.au
Insights
Actively involving General Practitioners (GPs) in paediatric asthma patient care significantly improved GP satisfaction with hospital communication. This initiative enhanced GP understanding of patient hospitalizations without affecting follow-up attendance rates.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Asthma Management
- General Practice Collaboration
- Healthcare Communication
Background:
- Effective communication between hospital staff and General Practitioners (GPs) is crucial for optimal post-discharge care of paediatric asthma patients.
- Current communication practices may lead to suboptimal patient care and physician dissatisfaction.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the impact of actively involving GPs in the post-discharge care of paediatric asthma patients on their satisfaction with hospital communication.
- To assess if enhanced GP involvement improves understanding of patient hospitalizations and post-discharge care plans.
Main Methods:
- A randomized controlled trial involving 60 paediatric asthma patients and their identified GPs.
- Intervention group GPs received telephone calls and detailed printed information about patient hospital care and post-discharge recommendations.
- Follow-up appointments were scheduled for intervention patients to see their GPs.
Main Results:
- Significantly higher satisfaction reported by intervention GPs regarding communication with hospital staff (96.4% vs 48.3%).
- Intervention GPs reported greater perceived involvement in post-discharge care (75.0% vs 44.8%) and understanding of hospitalizations (96.4% vs 62.1%).
- No significant difference in follow-up attendance rates between intervention and control groups (85.7% vs 72.4%).
Conclusions:
- Active GP involvement significantly enhances satisfaction with communication between hospitals and GPs for paediatric asthma care.
- The intervention improved GPs' understanding of patient hospitalizations and their role in post-discharge management.
- The study lacked sufficient power to determine effects on patient morbidity.
Objective:
To assess whether efforts to actively involve General Practitioners (GPs) in the postdischarge care of their paediatric asthma patients improved their satisfaction with communication with hospital staff.
Methodology:
Randomized controlled trial involving 60 patients admitted to the Royal Children's Hospital, Melbourne, with acute asthma and an identifiable GP. The GPs of the intervention patients were telephoned during the admission. Intervention patients and their GPs received printed information detailing the care the patient received in hospital and the recommended postdischarge care, as well as standardized educational booklets about asthma. Follow-up appointments were made for intervention patients to attend their GPs.
Results:
The GPs of intervention patients were more satisfied when compared to the GPs receiving a standard level of communication (96.4% vs 48.3% of the intervention and control GPs, respectively, described the communication as good or extremely good, P = 0.0001). The intervention group GPs believed they were more involved after discharge (75.0% vs 44.8%, P = 0.005) and had greater understanding of their patient's hospitalisation (96.4% vs 62.1%, P = 0.005). These differences were noted despite there being no difference in the rate of follow-up attendance with GPs for intervention and control patients (85.7% vs 72.4%, P = 0.2). Qualitative data supported these findings with GPs expressing approval of the intervention used.
Conclusion:
Efforts to actively involve GPs in the postdischarge care of their paediatric patients with asthma resulted in a marked improvement in their satisfaction with the communication with medical staff at the Royal Children's Hospital, Melbourne. The study had insufficient power to demonstrate a difference in morbidity.