[Home care for acute pulmonary embolism: Feasibility and general practitioner acceptability]

Area of Science:

• Pulmonary Medicine
• Healthcare Management
• General Practice

Context:

• International guidelines suggest ambulatory care for low-risk pulmonary embolism (PE).
• Current French practice involves hospital-based initial PE management.
• Assessing feasibility and physician acceptance of ambulatory PE care is crucial.

Purpose:

• Determine the rate of PE patients eligible for ambulatory management.
• Identify reasons for hospitalization of low-risk PE patients.
• Evaluate general practitioner (GP) acceptance of PE home care and patient preferences.

Summary:

• A study in Montpellier found only 14.1% of PE patients met home care criteria.
• 68.3% of GPs favored home care for PE, especially with specialist collaboration.
• Most GPs desired expert consultation and a one-week outpatient follow-up for ambulatory PE care.

Impact:

• Highlights a gap between guideline recommendations and current clinical practice for PE management.
• Suggests a need for developing structured ambulatory care pathways for PE.
• Indicates GP willingness to adopt home care models for PE with appropriate support systems.