Innovation and testing in general practitioners' practice - the challenging path from idea to new practice

Area of Science:

• Occupational Medicine
• Primary Care Research
• Health Services Research

Background:

• General practitioners (GPs) require effective tools for managing sick-listed patients with complex needs.
• Collaboration between GPs, employers, and social welfare counselors is crucial for patient recovery.
• The ISIVET tool was developed to aid GPs in sick leave follow-up and stakeholder communication.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore general practitioners' experiences using the ISIVET mapping and dialogue tool.
• To assess the feasibility and perceived benefits of ISIVET in sick leave management.
• To identify barriers and facilitators for implementing new tools in primary care.

Main Methods:

• Qualitative study involving individual interviews with seven GPs.
• GPs tested the ISIVET tool during sick leave follow-up in a Norwegian municipality.
• Data were analyzed using systematic text condensation.

Main Results:

• GPs perceived ISIVET positively for visualizing health-work complexities.
• Challenges included data collection procedures and tool adaptation to busy workflows.
• Unclear ownership, lack of local anchoring, and insufficient experience sharing negatively impacted testing.
• Despite positive perceptions, the tool's practical implementation difficulties led to testing 'failure'.

Conclusions:

• The ISIVET tool shows potential for improving sick leave follow-up, but requires significant adaptation for practical use in primary care.
• Addressing technological and workflow integration issues is essential for successful implementation.
• Future testing should focus on simplifying the tool and ensuring adequate support and experience sharing among users.