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General Practice Training And Virtual Communities Of Practice - A Review Of The Literature, Stephen Barnett, Sandra C. Jones, Sue Bennett, Donald C. Iverson, Andrew D. Bonney Oct 2012

General Practice Training And Virtual Communities Of Practice - A Review Of The Literature, Stephen Barnett, Sandra C. Jones, Sue Bennett, Donald C. Iverson, Andrew D. Bonney

Don C. Iverson

Background: Good General Practice is essential for an effective health system. Good General Practice training is essential to sustain the workforce, however training for General Practice can be hampered by a number of pressures, including professional, structural and social isolation. General Practice trainees may be under more pressure than fully registered General Practitioners, and yet isolation can lead doctors to reduce hours and move away from rural practice. Virtual communities of practice (VCoPs) in business have been shown to be effective in improving knowledge sharing, thus reducing professional and structural isolation. This literature review will critically examine the current evidence …


General Practice Training, Web 2.0 And Virtual Communities Of Practice: An Interview Study, Stephen Barnett, Sandra Jones, Lance Barrie, Andrew Bonney, Donald Iverson Oct 2012

General Practice Training, Web 2.0 And Virtual Communities Of Practice: An Interview Study, Stephen Barnett, Sandra Jones, Lance Barrie, Andrew Bonney, Donald Iverson

Don C. Iverson

Aims and Rationale General Practice training faces geographic barriers to efficient knowledge sharing, collaboration and professional and social support amongst its participants. In industry, large companies use internet tools to create Virtual Communities of Practice which improve collaboration, information sharing and support amongst staff. This study examined the feasibility of using Web 2.0 tools to create a Virtual Community of Practice for GP training. Methods Following a previous quantitative survey study, a qualitative telephone interview study was undertaken with GP Registrars and Supervisors in a Regional Training Provider. Participants were selected on the basis of highest internet usage in the …


Physician Communication Skills: Results Of A Survey Of General/Family Practitioners In Newfoundland, F Ashbury, Donald Iverson, Boris Kralj Jun 2012

Physician Communication Skills: Results Of A Survey Of General/Family Practitioners In Newfoundland, F Ashbury, Donald Iverson, Boris Kralj

Don C. Iverson

Purpose: To describe the attitudes related to communication skills, confidence in using commnication skills, and use of communication skills during the physician-patient encounter among a population-based sample of family physicians. Procedures: A mailed survey, distributed to all family physicians and general practitioners currently practicing in Newfoundland. The questionnaire was designed to collect data in five general areas participant demographics, physician confidence in using specific communication strategies, perceived adequacy of time spent by physicians with their patients, physician use of specific communication strategies with the adult patients they saw in the prior week, and physician use of specific communication strategies during …


What Do Older Patients Want? Understanding Older Patients' Attitudes Towards General Practice Trainees, Andrew D. Bonney, Sandra C. Jones, Donald Iverson, Christopher Magee Jun 2012

What Do Older Patients Want? Understanding Older Patients' Attitudes Towards General Practice Trainees, Andrew D. Bonney, Sandra C. Jones, Donald Iverson, Christopher Magee

Don C. Iverson

Context: Older patients constitute an increasing proportion of the caseloads in general practice (GP) training practices, but are relatively reluctant to consult trainees. Understanding their attitudes is a first step in improving older patient-trainee interaction. Objectives: Characterise the attitudes of older patients to GP trainees. Design: Cross-sectional survey; exploratory factor analysis; logistic regression. Setting: Randomised, stratified sample of 38 training practices across five Australian states. Participants: Patients aged 60 years and over (N=911; response rate 47.9%). Instrument: Questionnaire for self-completion: previously piloted and subjected to factor analysis. Main and secondary outcome measures: Identification of attitude factors; patient characteristics predicting high …


Patients' Attitudes To General Practice Registrars: A Review Of The Literature, Andrew Bonney, Lyn Phillipson, Samantha Reis, Sandra Jones, Donald Iverson Jun 2012

Patients' Attitudes To General Practice Registrars: A Review Of The Literature, Andrew Bonney, Lyn Phillipson, Samantha Reis, Sandra Jones, Donald Iverson

Don C. Iverson

Introduction With the population ageing, it is imperative for training practices to provide GP registrars with sound experience in managing the health problems of older persons, especially chronic conditions. However, it is reported that a significant proportion of these patients will be resistant to consulting registrars, with concerns regarding disruption of continuity of care being a significant factor. The challenge for training practices is to identify approaches to engage registrars in the management of older patients whilst maintaining patient satisfaction. This paper presents a review of the literature on patient attitudes to general practice registrars to better understand the nature …


Older Patients' Attitudes To General Practice Registrars: A Qualitative Study, Andrew Bonney, Lyn Phillipson, Sandra Jones, Donald Iverson Jun 2012

Older Patients' Attitudes To General Practice Registrars: A Qualitative Study, Andrew Bonney, Lyn Phillipson, Sandra Jones, Donald Iverson

Don C. Iverson

Background Research suggests that older patients may be reluctant to engage general practice registrars (GPRs) in their care. The authors undertook a qualitative study of the attitudes of older patients to GPRs to investigate this issue. Method Thirty-eight patients aged 60 years and over from three training practices participated in semistructured telephone interviews, which explored patients responses to GPRs. The interviews were recorded, transcribed and analysed using a template analysis approach. Results Analysis of the interviews produced five major themes concerning patient attitudes to GPRs: desire for continuity, desire for access, openness, trust and a desire for meaningful communication. Discussion …


The Conference For General Practice 2009, Andrew Bonney, Lyn Phillipson, Sandra Jones, Donald Iverson Jun 2012

The Conference For General Practice 2009, Andrew Bonney, Lyn Phillipson, Sandra Jones, Donald Iverson

Don C. Iverson

Objectives The medical literature suggests that older patients may be reluctant to engage general practice registrars in their medical care. This can lead to distortions in the clinical caseload of general practice registrars and dissatisfaction for older patients when seeing general practice registrars. The authors undertook a qualitative study of older patients to investigate their attitudes to having general practice registrars involved in their medical care to address this issue. Methods The study was conducted in three general practice (GP) training practices in southeast NSW, Australia. Appropriate ethics approval was obtained before commencing the research. Reception staff handed patients invitations …


General Practice Registrars: Attitudes Of Older Patients, Andrew D. Bonney, Sandra C. Jones, Lyn Phillipson, Donald C. Iverson Jun 2012

General Practice Registrars: Attitudes Of Older Patients, Andrew D. Bonney, Sandra C. Jones, Lyn Phillipson, Donald C. Iverson

Don C. Iverson

Previous research indicates that older patients may be less willing to consult general practice registrars (GPRs), reducing training opportunities in chronic/complex care. This survey explores older patients’ attitudes in order to inform models of interaction that would be acceptable to patients. METHODS Ten training general practices distributed questionnaires for self completion to 50 patients aged 60 years and over. Chi-square, Spearman’s rho and logistic regression were used for analysis. RESULTS The response rate was 47%. Ninetysix percent wanted ongoing contact with their general practitioner if they saw a GPR. Twenty-four percent were comfortable with GPR chronic/complex care, increasing to 73% …


Preparing For An Ageing Population: A Survey Of Older Patients' Attitudes To General Practice Registrars, Andrew D. Bonney, Sandra C. Jones, Lyn Phillipson, Donald C. Iverson Jun 2012

Preparing For An Ageing Population: A Survey Of Older Patients' Attitudes To General Practice Registrars, Andrew D. Bonney, Sandra C. Jones, Lyn Phillipson, Donald C. Iverson

Don C. Iverson

The ageing population makes it imperative to provide appropriate training for general practice registrars (GPRs) in the community-based care of older patients. However, data suggest that older patients may be less willing to consult GPRs for chronic/complex care; adversely affecting training opportunities and potentially the satisfaction of older patients in training practices. This cross-sectional study was undertaken to investigate this concern in the Australian context and develop models of older patient-GPR interaction that are acceptable to patients.