Dementia consults: predictors of compliance by primary care physicians

This study was designed to determine rates of primary care physician compliance with recommendations made by physician-consultants at an Alzheimer's disease center. A mail survey was sent to primary care physicians, who were asked to indicate which recommendations had been implemented and to select reasons for lack of adherence. The response rate was 53 percent (49/92). Some 83 percent of recommendations were implemented. Compliance with medical recommendations was higher (87 percent) than with social or behavioral issues (69 percent). Reasons for noncompliance indicated that patient or family barriers were responsible in 48 percent of cases, while physicians were responsible in 24 percent. These findings validate the development of two educational programs: curricula that support the primary care physician in conveying the value of these interventions and guidelines to assist specialists in communicating treatment recommendations.