Dealing with parental concerns: A study of GPs' practice.

Area of Science:

• Pediatrics
• Communication Studies
• General Practice

Background:

• Preventive child health assessments are crucial opportunities for parents to voice concerns about their child's development.
• Effective communication between general practitioners (GPs) and parents is vital for addressing these concerns.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze how GPs explore and conclude discussions about parental concerns during preventive child health assessments.
• To identify conversational strategies used by GPs in managing parental concerns.

Main Methods:

• Utilized conversation analysis (CA) for interactional microanalysis.
• Examined video recordings of 32 preventive child health assessments.

Main Results:

• GPs initiated discussions on concerns, but most remained unexplored by the consultation's end.
• Dialogue termination was achieved by prioritizing the biomedical agenda or direct child engagement.
• Parents generally complied with the GPs' approaches to managing concerns.

Conclusions:

• GPs showed initial interest in emotional concerns but often did not pursue them further.
• GPs employed both exploratory and non-exploratory techniques within single consultations.
• Understanding these conversational dynamics can enhance the effectiveness of preventive consultations.