Nurses or doctors: patient choice in family planning

For many years at one inner city practice, practice nurses trained in family planning and using an in-house protocol have been providing family planning advice and supplies to patients initially seen by the general practitioner. Two hundred consecutive patients attending the practice nurse or doctor for family planning supplies or advice were invited to complete a questionnaire to assess their preferred career and their overall satisfaction with the services. The patients' perceptions of whom they thought most appropriate to deal with their family planning requirements were explored. The patients who had seen the nurse rather than the doctor claimed to be more up to date with their cervical smear, to have had their blood pressure (BP) checked, and to be generally more satisfied with the consultation. Apart from the initial consultation for oral contraception most patients stated they would prefer to attend the nurse.